Feline Instincts
by Aquarius Galuxy
Summary: [Sequel to Peace by the River – read it first] Ray and Mariah are humans again. But... The Bladebreakers, Mariah and Emily are brought to another dimension to save something. Will they succeed, or will it be too late? RayMariah, MaxEmily OCOC later on
1. Purrfect Match

And here's the sequel to Peace by the River!!! Big thanks to all who reviewed!!! To those who haven't read Peace yet, I strongly suggest you read it first.

Note: This happens two years after Peace, and Ray and Mariah are not engaged/married yet. The genre's Romance/Fantasy/Drama, as usual. Ray's 19, Mariah's 18, Kai's 20, Tyson's 19, Max's 19, Kenny's 19. That's all I'm saying for now.

What's up with FFN taking some of the signs (like the inverted 'v' and the asterisk) away?! Now I can't create that cute little face with two inverted 'v's and the hyphen in between. (Except for the text in reviews.) You all know what I mean, right?

Disclaimer: I don't own Beyblade, and I never will. It's not as if the owner's going to give the show to me. Sighs I do own my story, though.

**Feline Instincts **

**By Aquarius Galuxy**

**Chapter 1: Purrfect Match**

"Rrrrrrrrringggg!" The telephone sounded merrily, giving everyone a shock in the Kon household.

Ray walked over to it and picked it up in curiosity. The phone did not ring very often – the villagers preferred communicating in person (it felt more sincere) – and there were times when he thought it might have become spoilt.

"Hello, this is Ray Kon speaking."

"Hey, Ray. This is Kai. Your ex-team leader if you've forgotten –"

"Kai?! Is that really you? I was starting to think you've lost my phone number or something. This is only the second time we've talked!" Ray interrupted. Who wouldn't, after years of almost zero communication? (The first was when Ray phoned him to find out how he was doing.) "How've you been?"

"Yeah, it's me. And I'm fine. I assume you are too, considering your reply." Much to Ray's amusement, Kai didn't seem so cold anymore.

"How about organising a reunion, old buddy?"

Kai paused. The nineteen-year-old guessed the 'old buddy' phrase had hit him for a while.

"Actually, Tyson and Max have already planned one. At my mansion. Without asking for my permission first."

"You have a mansion?!"

"Voltaire died and decided to leave it to me. Of course, I had the whole thing renovated."

"Cool! So… about the reunion – when would it be?"

"They're thinking of meeting at the Japan Airport [Okay, I know Japan doesn't have just one airport, but just take it as the one closest to Kai's mansion, K?] the Monday after next. And they're staying for a month. I'll have to buy a whole supermarket to feed that big mouth of Tyson's." Kai let out an uncharacteristic laugh. Albeit short, it was still a laugh from the never-smiling, always-straight-faced-and-solemn Kai.

On the other end of the line, Ray didn't really hear his slate-haired friend's last sentence. One month with his ex-teammates was great… but one month without Mariah…? It was unthinkable.

"Uh… Kai? Can Mariah come along?"

"I don't think the others will mind if Mariah joined us, Ray. We wouldn't want you pining away for your girlfriend, would we?" He smirked, knowing that Ray was most probably blushing at the other end of the line.

"You're a lot more sociable now, Kai," the raven-haired man said, in an attempt to switch the subject. "What's with the change?"

"I hate to say it, but you guys kinda influenced me."

Ray laughed. "Our efforts finally paid off, then. Hey, Kai, I gotta go now, but I'll see you Monday after next, alright?"

"Yeah. Until then."

"Bye!"

"Bye."

Ray put the receiver down and exhaled deeply, grinning. It would be great, being with his buddies, and of course, Mariah, for a whole month.

'I'll go find Mari.'

* * *

"So… that's about it," Ray finished, having just told Mariah about his phone conversation with Kai. "You're going with me, right?"

Mariah laughed at his pleading eyes, giving him a hug to show that she had no intention to offend him. "Of course. I don't think my parents will mind."

"Let's just hope they don't. But you can tell them you're visiting some friends, Mari."

She nodded thoughtfully.

The pair was sitting at their usual spot – the stream bank where he first found her. The late morning sun permeated through the rustling canopy and dappled the water, creating dancing shadows everywhere. Their feet, as well as their calves, were submerged in the clear, cool, running water.

The little blue bird sat some distance away from them. It was not alone, however. There was a slightly smaller blue bird sitting beside it. It chirped, and the cock rubbed his head against the smaller bird, albeit not roughly. They were mates.

Mariah entwined her legs with his, snuggling closer to him as he wrapped a strong arm around her waist. The man twirled her hair around his fingers absent-mindedly.

"You're really nice to me, Ray."

"Hmm?" he said distractedly, mentally making a decision that had been hovering in his mind for some time now. It was, however, too early to tell her about it now.

"I love you."

"Me too." He suddenly came to his full senses, as the feminine body in his arms turned to look at him. The pink-haired woman grinned when he gave her a small kiss on the tip of her nose. She crept a hand up his chest, feeling him shiver at her touch, finally resting her hand behind his neck. [Note: They are fully clothed, in case you were wondering.]

Ray made no move to stop her as she leaned in, giving him a sweet, gentle kiss. He returned it, hugging her to himself as he pulled her down to the ground with him. Her light weight resting on his body caused him to deepen the kiss further, and he drew light circles on her back. The sensation made her press herself closer to him. The forest sounds, which had been ignored since the time they arrived, were now completely gone from their hearing. To Ray, the only being that mattered in the world then was the woman in his arms, and to her, he was the only thing that was worth paying attention to.

He ran his tongue across her lower lip… She parted her lips for him, anticipating the electrical sparks that she knew would come…

When they finally broke apart, Mariah could see some traces of sadness in Ray's golden eyes. She gazed into his orbs, which were only a few inches away.

"What's wrong, Ray?"

He sighed. "I hate to break this to you, Mari, but… I have to go to town three days later, on Friday. I'll return to the village on Monday."

For some reason, the pink-haired woman had a feeling that his trip out of the village had something to do with their past, but a wave of sadness washed it away. Without Ray for three days…?

"I'll miss you…."

"I'll miss you too… but, of course, we'll still be able to see each other before and after my trip, right? 'And possibly longer…'

"Yeah…" Mariah gave him her brightest smile to cheer him up. "I think we'd better go back now. Before our stomachs grumble."

Ray grinned at her. His pink-haired girlfriend rolled off him and got up, rolling her pant legs back into place, then putting on her shoes. He did the same, and then caught her hand in his. They smiled at each other, heading for the village.

* * *

The peaceful and calm, yet slightly noisy atmosphere greeted them as they stepped into the White Tiger Village. Few villagers noticed the couple as they hurried around, carrying out their chores. A pair of eyes caught sight of and fixed on them.

Ray was well aware of the fact that they were in full view of everybody, but this time, he wasn't going to hide the truth. It wouldn't be that necessary anymore. Giving Mariah a small smile, he squeezed her hand in reassurance. She blushed at this public display of slight affection.

"It'll be fine," he murmured. "And don't forget – I love you."

The feline woman returned the smile.

So engrossed in their own little world were they, that the two people failed to notice the figure which fell into step some way behind them. It closed in on the pair, until they were barely a metre apart.

"So, Raymond, are you finally going to tell us about your _little_ secret?" Lee's voice sliced through the air.

The two people whipped around in shock, reddening. Ray caught Mariah's hand in protectiveness, being the first one to get over the surprise.

"Uh… Lee… What do you mean by 'finally'?"

"Don't tell me you two just 'got to know' each other yesterday. Because I know it isn't true," Lee replied in mock harshness. The amusement in his eyes was kept well hidden.

Ray swallowed, his mind searching for something to say in reply.

Mariah managed to find her voice. "How did you know, Lee?" she asked, her tone barely above a whisper.

Lee looked something like this: ¬.¬

"I would have thought you knew better than that, Mariah. Every time I mentioned Ray to you, you'd blush, your eyes will glaze over, and you'll look like you were somewhere else, or rather, with _someone_ else, and there'll be this big grin plastered on your face."

'Oops.' Mariah averted her eyes and blushed.

Despite the situation, Ray leaned a little closer to Mariah and murmured, "I didn't know you liked me _that_ much." His eyes were dancing, and there was a smile playing on his lips.

The pink-haired woman blushed to the roots of her hair. "Ray!" she hissed, giving him a mock semi-glare. Then she turned and gave her brother an annoyed glare. "Lee!"

He looked guilty for a second, then broke into a grin.

"Actually, I knew it was coming. Just wanted to give you two a bit of a scare. But… I'm really glad you're together." He cocked his head to a side and scrutinised them. "To tell you the truth, you make a really nice couple. And that leaves me the odd one out."

He shrugged helplessly, and then continued. " I think I'd better go off now, and leave you two lovebirds alone. Just don't go… too far."

There was a slight tone of warning in his words. Lee nodded at them, then walked away.

"Oh, we already did," Ray muttered in reply, only loud enough for Mariah to hear.

"What's done can't be undone," she said slyly. "Let's go somewhere else less… crowded."

Their legs took them to his house, and they stepped inside, closing the door.

"You know, Mari, I didn't know you were like that every time Lee talked about me," he murmured, slipping his arms around her waist to pull her closer. She wrapped her arms around his back, using the same tone as he did.

"I don't just 'like' you that much, Ray…" She drew herself towards him, until their faces were only centimetres apart. The nineteen-year-old smiled. Mariah continued. "… I _love_ you more than just that…"

"I know…" Ray closed the distance between them with a kiss that was starting to get fiery…

"Ray! You have a friend with you, haven't you?" His mother called from the kitchen. "Why don't you invite him or her to stay for lunch?"

The two lovers broke apart. The raven-haired man scratched the back of his head in slight embarrassment. "Sorry… I forgot my mother's at home."

He looked at the blushing woman in his embrace. She smiled. "It's alright. Aren't you going to invite me for lunch?"

"You'll stay, right?" he asked hopefully.

"Of course, silly." She ruffled his hair affectionately, grinning. Catching her hand, he pulled her into the kitchen with him.

"My 'friend' agreed to stay, Mum."

Mrs Kon turned to face her son, eyebrows lifted slightly in amusement at the clasped hands. She smiled at them.

"Good morning, Mrs Kon," Mariah greeted her, returning the smile a little shyly.

"Hello, Mariah," she replied. The older woman turned back to her cooking, and saw her son give the pink-haired female a warm smile out of the corner of her eye. This was going to be interesting…

* * *

Mariah nearly snarled at the foam-covered dishes she was supposed to wash. It was her turn to do the dishes, and usually, she wasn't this impatient. She missed Ray terribly – he was already gone for three days, and he was returning today. He's told her to wait for him at he stone dish in the forest after lunch, and she couldn't wait to see him again. She missed his smile, his sparkling eyes, his warmth… and the feel of his skin against hers.

Miraculously, she got the dishes done in four minutes flat – a record time for her. The pink-haired woman rushed into her room to change into a light pink T-shirt and a pair of blue pants, then dashed out of the house, grabbing Galux on the way. At least there would be someone to accompany her if Ray wasn't there yet. She nearly ran through the village in her hurry to meet the raven-haired man again. The wind blew through her hair, ruffling her pink locks. Mariah didn't care – she could tidy herself when she reached the stone dish.

Ray wasn't there when she reached their spot. A pang of disappointment hit her. The woman consoled herself, reminding herself that the day was not over yet. She ran her fingers through her hair to comb it, leaving her pink tresses untied. Ray liked them better that way. She straightened her clothes, her heart slowing down to its normal rate, often giving a particularly hard thump every time she thought of Ray.

"Looks like someone got here before I did," a very familiar voice rang out.

"Ray!" Mariah whipped around to see the raven-haired man standing by a tree. She was frozen to the ground for a while as she gazed softly at him, her eyes sparkling with tears of joy. Her face broke into a genuine smile as he walked towards her. Snapping out of her trance, she ran towards him, wrapping her arms around him in a tight hug. The Chinese man lifted her off the ground, swinging her around in circles, then gently put her down.

"Oh, Ray… I missed you…" Mariah whispered.

"I missed you too…" he replied softly, tipping her chin up, quickly claiming her lips in a fiery and passionate kiss, making up for all the lost time in the three days they were apart. He drew slow lines down her back, making her shiver with pleasure under his touch. She ran her hands lightly down his chest. Ray shuddered, and moved away from her lips, tracing butterfly kisses down her jawbone. She opened her eyes.

"Ray…" Mariah whispered. A gasp escaped her lips as she felt his fangs graze her neck slightly. He stopped kissing her, raising his head to gaze into her eyes. She smiled lovingly at him, puling herself close to him to give him another kiss, before drawing away.

"So, Ray, what did you go to town for?"

The man paused, weighing his words. He caught her hand, and they strolled a little distance away. Mariah waited patiently for him to speak. There was no hurry. He turned to face her, holding her hand in his.

"Mariah… Do you remember? This is where I first told you that I love you," he said, his voice filled to the brim with sincerity. The pink-haired woman looked around. The stream gurgled merrily, the tree leaves rustled above them, and a light breeze blew. Memories from two years ago flashed back to her. Her eyes softened.

"Yeah." She locked her gaze with his.

"And…" Ray took one of his hands from hers, reaching into his pocket. "Do you remember the promise I made to you twelve years ago?"

Her golden eyes widened as the particular memory floated into her mind. 'He still remembers…'

She nodded breathlessly. 'Don't tell me…'

Before she knew it, Ray had knelt down and a little dark blue box was opened in front of her.

"Mariah…" His eyes – the windows to his soul – revealed all that he felt at that point in time – sincerity, hope, a trace of pleading, and most of all, a deep love… a true love for her. "Will you marry me?"

The diamond ring glittered to back up his question.

Her large, golden eyes moistened as she whispered her reply. "Yes."

Ray broke into a smile, standing up. He removed the ring from its box and caught her left hand, slipping it onto her ring finger. It fitted perfectly. That done, Mariah pounced on him, giving him a deep kiss, which promised to be a lot more erotic… The intimacy of the moment caused the couple to miss the still, tingling air around them. The feline woman was about to give her fiancé a particularly loving tug on his lips, when a sharp brightness stung her eyelids. She opened her eyes and broke away from Ray in shock, unable to speak.

The pink-haired female could only see bright light surrounding her and Ray. What she felt was reflected in his eyes. Even then, he had started to glow. She tried to call out to him, but no sound came out of her throat. He was shrinking… his normal, human shape changed to a longer, thinner one. Looking down, she realised, to her shock and confusion, that the same was happening to her. Mariah closed her eyes, dreading what she would see when she opened them. She waited until the blinding light died down, then cracked an eye open. Her golden orbs widened at the sight before her.

Her eyesight, hearing, and sense of smell were a lot sharper, and her surroundings hit her like a tonne of rocks. Even then, what caught her attention most was the fact that she could no longer see Ray. A handsome, young, mature black cat stood in his place, feline eyes also wide with shock. She blinked. Her nose told her that it had the same scent as Ray. That could only mean one thing…

"Ray? Is that you?" she said. Or, at least, she thought she did. What came out of her mouth, however, was a 'meow'.

The black cat meowed in reply, and she heard Ray's voice in her mind.

'Yes, it's me, I'm afraid.'

She raised what used to be her right hand. What greeted her was a paw, covered with pink fur, which was the colour of her hair. The same went for the rest of her body. Her tail twitched. Looking up, she started to observe the black cat. He was coated with raven-black fur and had golden eyes, but something else stood out. A small, blue, circular crystal was firmly stuck on his forehead. It contained Driger's motif.

'Tell me I'm dreaming, Ray. And what exactly am I?'

The black cat made a noise which sounded very much like a sigh. 'Mari, you're not dreaming. And you're a cat. A beautiful, pink cat.'

Her pupils dilated and her eyes softened as she smiled at him. There was a small, circular, fuchsia crystal on her forehead, which had Galux's motif in it. The engagement ring, which he'd given her, had expanded, and was now fitted snugly a little way above her left paw.

'Driger? Galux?' Ray tried to contact their bit beasts. 'Can someone tell me how we're able to talk through our minds?'

'We help to connect you to the minds of those who possess bit beasts, so that you can at least communicate with them, young ones,' Driger's deep voice rang out in both their minds.

'So… you can hear what we say – or think?' Mariah asked.

'Yes,' Galux replied.

'Oh… Anyway, thanks for helping us!' The pink cat said gratefully.

'You're very welcome, mistress.'

The two bit beasts withdrew slightly from their minds. Mariah slunk over to the slightly larger black cat, rubbing her head against his neck and purring. 'You're so sweet, Ray.'

'And you're the best.' He turned his head to face her. The pink cat inched closer to him. He tried to give her a kiss. However, that was not the wisest of choices – their whiskers got in the way. Ray's face fell. He made do with a lick on her nose instead. She purred , golden eyes sparkling happily. The pink cat suddenly felt very small, compared to the trees in the forest, which suddenly seemed many times taller.

'Um… so, what do we do now, Ray?'

* * *

So how was the chapter??? Was Kai a little OOC? I think he was. Sorry to all Kai fans!!! Anyway, don't mind if Ray and Mariah are turned into cats, okay? This is a fantasy-themed fic. =)

Now… review and tell me what you think about this chapter!!! Make me happy!!! Thankew!!!


	2. The Legend

Hello all and welcome to the second chapter of Feline Instincts. =) 

Due to my fingers getting itchy all of a sudden, I've decided to reply to all your reviews for the previous chapter! (Tell me to stop if you don't like it. =P)

**Mystique Rain – **Somehow, I don't think kitties and humans are _that_ different. Take Ray and Mariah for example. =) As for the emoticon… it was an experiment to see if anyone would object to its presence. I won't use them in stories next time.

**Bloody Mary – **I think cats are nice too. They're my favourite animals.

**m – **From my point of view, fantasy is a place where the rather impossible things happen. I see fantasy as having little restrictions. =P

Jadis Fazer – Thank you! =) 

**Mountain Galux –** I chose to make them sound older so that their… behaviour would not be so… restricted. =) Then, to make it fair, the other characters will also be under the same naming scheme. Sorry if you don't really like that aspect!

**Galux Kitty – **I thought Ray's proposal seemed quite awkward. The raven will appear again. But… that's part of the plot further on. =) I won't say more.

**Max-Tate –** I don't think it will be easy to write. But you know what? There'll be Max/Emily later on in Feline Instincts. =)

**GaLuX – **I'm glad you like it.

**grand admiral chelli **– Have I made your day now? Glad to be of service! [I must stress that my fics are NOT the best. =) Those in my favourites are better. Go read them! =P]

**Kaila --** Blushes and waves hands dismissively You're too kind! There many other better writers!

And again, I solemnly claim that I do not own Beyblade and its characters.

**Feline Instincts**

**By Aquarius Galuxy**

**Chapter 2: The Legend**

'Um… so, what do we do now, Ray?' Mariah looked questioningly at the black cat.

'I think we should head back to the village and ask Lee for help. Who else would believe that we've been turned into cats?' He gave her an affectionate lick. A low purr sounded in her throat.

'True…' There was a thoughtful expression on her face, before it disappeared. The pink cat gave her fiancé a smile, eyes sparkling with love. 'Let's go.'

The two felines set off, with their bit-less beyblades in a small cloth bag of Mariah's. Their clothes had vanished when they turned into cats. The pink creature observed her engagement ring, wondering if they would ever be transformed back into humans. She wanted so much to be permanently with Ray… She was looking forward to finally being able to marry the raven-haired man – which had been on her mind for sometime already.

'Ray?'

'Yeah?'

'D'you think… we'd ever be able to change back into humans?'

The black cat paused to look at her. Mariah's golden orbs were shimmering with worry. He leaned towards her, pressing his lips to hers in what resembled a kiss as much as possible. Their whiskers were somewhat irritating, although they ignored the additional sensation, nuzzling each other for what they were worth.

'I hope so,' Ray replied as he broke the intimate gesture. He sat back, then raised a forepaw to stroke her cheek. 'Our… _actions_ are… limited when we're in this form…'

The pink cat smirked. 'You're not thinking straight, _Raymond_…'

She snuggled up to him, laying her head against his neck, half closing her eyes. A purr escaped her throat. The diamond ring caught the sun's light, glittering up at her. She opened her eyes again, looking at the ring, stretching her left foreleg in front of her to see it more clearly. 'It's _beautiful_, Ray…'

'And you're the sweetest creature in the world, Mari.' The raven-furred cat grinned as a light blush warmed her pink fur _very_ slightly. She twined her tail around his left hindleg lightly, watching in satisfaction as he shivered. However, she did not expect him to shake off the cloth bag and pounce on her playfully. She fell to the ground, and the black cat gave her a lick under her chin.

'Ray!!!'

'What?' He bent down, nuzzling her at the same spot. Her throaty purr caused his lips to twitch up in a smile.

'You're so… The black feline could tell what she was trying to say. He ran his tail along hers, hearing the growl emitted deep from her throat. He could only sense pleasure from her. 'So… felinely perfect…'

Mariah pawed at his chest, a mischievous glint appearing in her golden eyes. She wriggled about, until she was lying properly on her back. The black cat raised his head to gaze at her curiously. They, he closed his eyes, letting a growl escape him when he felt her paw slide slowly down his underside… He inched forward, partly to give her a loving nibble on her ear, and also partly to let her have more access to his body. A shudder rippled through his frame as she reached the more… sensitive… part of his body. He growled again, eyes closed. 'Mari…'

'Yeah, Ray?' She inhaled deeply, filling her lungs with the scent of this particular black cat. Her intent gaze never once left his new form, and she was intrigued by the way he still seemed so… appealing…

'I love you… a lot…'

'I'm glad. 'Cause I do too.'

His eyes suddenly snapped open. The pink cat recognised the fiery passion in them, as she had so often seen, the familiar expression registering in her mind in a second. It wasn't long now… 'Um… Ray? How do cats –'

He interrupted before she could finish her sentence, having gone through the same trend of thought as her. 'We'll see…'

A sly smile spread across his lips, matching hers perfectly. This was getting interesting…

* * *

The leader of the White Tiger team stood alone at the common beyblade dish in the village, accompanied only by the spinning black blade in the stone bowl. Galeon was going through some tough training, with its master barking commands every half-minute. He wasn't satisfied with his blade's performance. Lee's concentration was suddenly broken by two voices in his mind.

'Um… Lee?' Or so he thought his little sister said.

'We have a _slight_ problem here…' Ray's voice joined in.

His irritation grew. Was the heat of the day getting to his mentality? Maybe his mind was kidding him, placing their voices in his head instead of his ear. Didn't they know that he did not like to be disturbed when he was practising? He let his temper get the better of him. "Can't you solve it yourselves?"

'We've got no idea how to,' Ray replied.

Lee caught his blade and whipped around impatiently to face the two people, telling himself that it had better be worth his time, except… they weren't there. He blinked. He _had_ heard them. They couldn't just disappear, could they? Surely his mind couldn't be playing games on his eyes this time?! "Ray? Mariah? Where are you?"

'Uh… down here…' Mariah told him hesitantly, as though Lee would explode any moment.

The young man looked down, expecting to see the two people playing some kind of stupid trick on him. Lee jumped about a foot into the air, his eyes comically bugging out. Two cats – one black and the other pink – stared back at him. They were no ordinary felines – each had some kind of crystal attached to its forehead. Ray waved a paw at him.

'Hi, Lee.'

Lee's eyes widened until the pink cat thought they might just pop out. He opened his mouth, but no sound came out. The two cats sat in front of him, waiting for him to take in what was the truth. The Chinese man tried to overcome the shock. He turned to the black cat, all the while feeling rather stupid trying to talk to a couple of animals.

"R-Ray?"

It meowed. 'Yeah.'

The word rang out in Lee's mind. He swallowed, facing the other feline.

"Mariah?"

'It's me.' She nodded. Lee swallowed, then gave himself a hard pinch. His eyes told him what he dreaded. It was true. Ray and Mariah had somehow transformed into cats.

"What _happened_ to the two of you? How do you manage to talk in my head?"

The black cat shrugged. 'We just got turned into cats. We have no idea why,' he replied.

'And the bit beasts are helping us to communicate,' Mariah added. 'But only with people who have bit beasts. That includes you.'

Lee nodded slowly, the cogs in his mind almost visibly spinning. "What's in that bag there?" He gestured at the cloth carrier Ray had just put down on the ground beside him.

The black cat tipped the bag over, causing a grey blade and a pink blade to topple out. Both were without the animal motifs. Lee squatted down, picking up both blades to look more closely at them.

Mariah pawed at her forehead. 'Out bit beasts are here.'

Her brother looked up at her, noticing, for the first time, that both felines seemed rather ruffled and tired. They didn't say anything about it, though. Weird.

"Have you two been through the mill or what?" He asked. "You're really untidy."

The cats looked at each other, then back at him. The black cat smiled nervously. 'Uh… it's nothing serious, Lee… heh…'

The raven-haired man narrowed his eyes, but let the matter rest. He had more important things to see to now. "Both of you are really lucky to have your parents out of the village for the week, you know."

They nodded in agreement, gathering their things.

'So… can you help us find out how to change back into humans, Lee?' Mariah pleaded, widening her eyes.

"What else do you think I'll do? Sit around and watch you being cats?" He responded. "Come on. We'll go to our house."

* * *

Lee ran his index finger down the content page of a thick book. Two pairs of golden eyes watched him, their owners being unable to flip the pages of a book properly, and therefore not being able to help the man.

"'Flu'… 'Fever'… 'Headache'… 'Cough'… 'Runny nose'… 'Diarrhoea'… 'Chicken pox'… 'Measles'… 'Mumps'…" The man looked up at the two cats, whom were sitting very close together on a chair in front of him. He sighed. "No. There are definitely no cases matching yours yet."

'Lee… perhaps it would be useful if we mentioned that you've been checking the book of common illnesses…' Mariah said slowly.

He gave them a sheepish smile, walking over to the giant bookshelf in the house, scanning over the various titles. His gaze landed on a short, old book labelled 'Legends'. 'I wonder…'

He pulled the thick book out, walking over to the table. He sunk into his chair, and flipped it open, running his eyes down the yellowed pages, searching for any clues to undo the 'human-turned-cat' predicament that had fallen upon his sister and friend. A word caught his attention. Quickly flipping through the thin pages, he came to a stop at another content page with a single word as its title. Transformations.

Mariah nuzzled her fiancé worriedly. 'Ray… what if we can't change back? What if we're too late? What if we've already missed the time for changing back?'

The black feline turned to face her sideways. He lifted a paw to tip her face toward his. Gazing into her eyes, he spoke to her confidently. 'It'll be okay, Mari.'

Her worries melted away as he gave her an affectionate lick on her pink-furred cheek. She took a deep breath. 'There's something I've never told you, Ray… I've always looked forward to the day when you'd propose to me, and… now that you did, I really want to be your wife…'

Mariah's golden orbs shimmered with emotion. He gave her a small kiss. 'I _will_ marry you, Mari. Regardless of whether we're cats or humans. I love you.'

She smiled and rubbed her head against him, a low purr escaping her throat.

"Now – if you're quite finished with that…" Lee felt a _little_ pang of guilt when they broke away from each other. Nevertheless… "I need to ask you something. What were you doing before you turned into cats?"

'Well…' Ray looked at the female feline. 'I… proposed to her.'

She smirked, directing her thoughts to only him. 'Really? You were more like… _kissing_ me than anything else…'

'Nah… Making out.' He let out a purr of laughter. She merrily joined him.

It was directly after Ray's reply to him that Lee noticed the golden band, which adorned his sister's left paw. It was not surprising that he had actually missed it, what with the two of them changing to cats and all. The ring had a rather large diamond attached to the gold, engraved with words so tiny that he would have to squint to see them. Ray really loved her, didn't he? What Mariah's elder brother didn't know was that he had only hit the tip of the iceberg. They were meant to be together, in this life, the previous one, and the next. They were destined to be together. Without one, the other would not exist.

He turned back to the book, which was flipped to a half-burnt page. After a few moments of reading, his eyes nearly popped out.

"Ray – Mariah – I've found what we need to know –" Lee said through his teeth, trying to prevent himself from shouting at them before he knew the truth. "Could you please come here now?"

'Lee doesn't sound very happy, Ray.'

'Let's just hope for the best, then.'

The two cats leapt off the chair, bounding across the floor, then onto the table the man was sitting at.

"Read this. I trust that you are still able to recognise words." He pointed at a yellowed page.

A legend of the White Tiger Tribe has it that, when celestial bodies move into an ying-yang pattern, inter-dimensional gates will be opened after a specific time, allowing certain beings to pass through to other worlds. At the same time, a special pair, a male and a female – soulmates – will transform into felines upon vowing to be bonded. Not just at any place, but at the very spot they first made known their love to each other. A pair far from innocence, yet with nothing to prove their guilt. Only a true feline couple will be able to fulfill the legend to –

The page was burnt off from that point on. All three growled in frustration. There wasn't anything to tell them how they would be transformed back into humans. Then, there was the seriousness of the second-last line, apart from the other words on the page…

"What is that supposed to mean?" Lee narrowed his eyes. No one made a sound for a few moments. He decided not to wait. "Well, did those things happen?"

'Yes,' the black cat replied, then realising the full implications of what he said.

"Oh? Even the second-last sentence?" The leader of the White Tiger probed. Both cats looked away from him, avoiding even each other's eyes guiltily. There was no telling what their reactions would be if they looked at each other, and it was far too risky to let themselves break into grins at this point in time. The pink cat reddened, her fur slightly darkening. Her counterpart blushed too, but his raven-black fur revealed nothing. The answer was obvious and all three of them knew it.

Ray spoke through a direct link to Mariah. 'Heh heh…'

'Yeah. Countless numbers of "heh heh"s, not to mention the additional weird one earlier today…'

'You don't regret it, do you, Mari?'

'Of course not, Ray. I love you. And you tend to be so irresistible…'

'You are too… I love you.'

'So do I.'

"I expect an answer," Lee growled impatiently, looking from one feline to the other. He fixed his eyes on the black cat. Ray should be held responsible for it.

The black feline took a deep breath. 'Yes. Even that sentence.' He turned back to the man, taking full responsibility for what happened.

'You needn't be in it yourself, Ray,' the female cat spoke to him. 'I'm going through it with you.'

'Thanks so much, girl.'

'As long as we're together, I don't mind what we have to go through.'

"YOU – " Lee hissed. He was almost seething. How dare they do something like that? They were not even married! He should have seen it coming. He should have kept them apart…"You…"

He met the pleading gaze of his sister, one that he'd never been able to resist.

'Please, Lee… I love him, and I know he loves me too.'

The young man sunk back into the chair, taking a few deep breaths. He shouldn't let himself be a potential heart attack victim just because those two commited something that wasn't as serious as robbery or murder. He switched to a calmer tone. "I should have known that this was in the package as well."

The two felines were watching him apprehensively. He sighed. "I'll let this go, but only just this once. And Ray – if you dare to mistreat my sister in any way, or even ditch her, you'll be having to look out for yourself, because I'm coming after your head if you do."

The black cat was unfazed by the note of warning in his words. Staring back at Lee, he replied, 'I will never do that. I love her.' He gave Mariah a small smile. Relief flooded her. Lee seemed to be taking it quite well now, even seeming to adopt a resigned attitude where they were concerned.

Still, there was the problem of them being cats… Fear rising, she turned to Ray worriedly. 'But we're still cats! And the thing about the inter-dimensional gates… What's going to happen? Will we get into trouble?'

'Shh…' He rubbed his nose against hers, trying to do anything to calm her. 'We'll be fine, I think. And whatever happens, I'll always be there to protect you. I won't leave you.'

She shivered, anxiety ebbing off, although there was still some lingering. 'I guess we'll be fine… for now. Until the gates open.'

'Hey, calm down. We'll stick together and face whatever comes as one, okay?' He nuzzled her. She wasn't being her normal self. 'Please don't let anything happen to her,' he thought to himself.

Mariah sighed, bending down to rest her head on his shoulder. 'We'll be together, right?'

'Right.' She didn't sound too troubled now. He drew his tongue down her neck, watching as she trembled, nuzzling him back.

Lee looked away from the scene, trying to think of an excuse to leave the room and let the two lovebirds be alone. Right on cue, the phone rang.

"I'll answer it," Lee said, standing up and walking away. He might as well just keep quiet – the two cats paid him little, if any attention. 'No wonder they got turned into cats.'

The black cat stopped nuzzling the female, twining his tail around hers, before sliding head down to her belly and rubbing himself against her. She purred again, her growl reaching his mind. Mariah flipped over, lying on her back. He pawed and nuzzled her underside. 'Ray…'

'Yeah?'

'You're… really… good at this…' The pink creature panted, eyes closed, ears flat against her head. She was going to lose control of herself if he didn't stop soon.

'I had practice…' He grinned cheekily, never ceasing to pleasure her. Then, his ears pricked up at the sound of a familiar name.

* * *

Lee picked up the phone, wondering who the caller was. "Hello, this is Lee speaking."

"Hey, Lee! This is Tyson, Ray's ex-team member. I was just calling to see if you know where Ray is. I've tried calling his home but no one answered."

"Um… Ray's really not free at the moment – " Lee was distracted by the movement of two cats bounding into the room, ears erect at his words. " – But I can take down any message you have for him."

"Okay. Tell Ray that we're meeting at the airport at noon next Monday."

"Is there anything else?"

"No. Thanks, Lee! Bye!"

"Bye."

The man hung up, turning to face the two animals, which were looking at him expectantly. "Tyson reminds you to be at the airport at noon next Monday. Though I wonder how you're going to get there yourselves."

'Can you bring us there, Lee?' Ray and Mariah looked up at him hopefully.

"Alright." Lee smirked. "It is rather amusing to imagine how your friends will react, Ray. Especially since you've been turned into a cat."

'Oh dear…' Mariah sighed, although not sounding very worried. 'But we'll still be married in the end, so it's not so bad.' She looked at the black cat suggestively, inching closer to him.

"By the way, congrats on your proposal, Ray."

The two cats did not seem to hear him.

Lee rolled his eyes and walked out of the house, knowing that there was nothing he could do now to change the form of the cats, as well as their mindsets.

'I think Lee's too tradition-bound, don't you think so, Ray?' Mariah snuggled against the black cat. He licked her ear in return.

'I agree. Come on, let's go somewhere more cosy to take a nap.' He got up, waiting for her to do the same, before heading towards a comfortable-looking armchair. Both felines jumped onto it easily, snuggling up to each other. Mariah closed her eyes and was in dreamland before she knew it. Ray touched a raven-furred paw to her face, careful not to wake her. The afternoon heat finally got to him, and he fell into a dreamless sleep.

That was how Lee found them when he got home.

* * *

So… what did you all think of the kitty romance? Like it or not, its going to end in a few chappies. (Hint) That's not saying that Feline Instincts will end, though. =) Note: They're not normal cats, so there may be a few human characteristics appearing on them. =P

Why are you still here? GO REVIEW! =P Inspire me!


	3. The Reunion of the Bladebreakers

I'm back again!!! To all who wanted Feline Instincts to be up first, as well as all reviewers for this chappie, this chapter's for you!!! Thanks for reviewing and waiting! Oh, and here's something I think you should know… Since I'm on holidays now, I'll be able to update sooner, although I can't be very sure about updating my fics once next year starts… Sorry about that…

**virtual white tiger** – Thank you! And Ray and Mariah ARE the best.

**Galux Kitty** – Of course Lee can't watch her for every hour of the day. Someone else can do a better job than him... XD I know humans can do more… They'll turn back soon. I can say that, although it's not going to be in the next chapter.

**Arrythmic Song** – Yes, there's plot complication… After all, it was meant to have a deeper plot than its prologue.

**Paris Super Girls** – Uh… Yes, they're busy… with each other, that is. XP

**Mountain Galux** – Ray and Mariah will turn back soon. But for now, there're other events about to take place. Lee can't really help being the overprotective brother, though.

**grand admiral chelli** – I didn't want to go into details either… Read this chappie for their reactions!

**Bloody Mary** – Yes, poor Lee… Tyson and co.'s reactions are in this chapter!

**City Games** – Thanks for your comment! I think Ray and Mariah are cute…

**Jo-ju** – Hey, I updated! I wanted this story to be different.

**Shaedowe** – OOC means 'out of character'. Yes, they're so cute…

**Rhbacat** – Here, I updated… Have fun reading!

**ray-is-sexy** – (smiles) I'm not going to stop writing… And no, I haven't been changed into a cat before… It's just a figment of my imagination.

**fluffys-sidekick** – Thanks… I've updated!

And if you Ray/Mariah fans are interested, **Galux Kitty** has set up a Ray/Mariah C2 comm, which is basically an archive of the best Ray/Mariah fics. Want to subscribe? (It's free.) Copy this link into your web browser (if that's what it's called), and remember to remove the spacings first!

www .fanfiction. net /c2/7939/0/1/

Members get C2 email alerts, which include emails being sent if new fics are added to the comm.

Anyway, go on and read the chappie! Remember to review afterwards!

**Feline Instincts**

**By Aquarius Galuxy**

**Chapter 3: The ****Reunion**** of the Bladebreakers**

The distant sound of the aeroplane's engines could be heard in the plane cabin. All was silent, except for the occasional person speaking or doing something else. A stewardess pushed a small trolley down the aisle, serving drinks to the passengers on the plane. It was already on the way to Japan.

A raven-haired, young Chinese man of about nineteen sat at his window seat, bored. He looked out of the glass window. Fluffy, white clouds, which were suspended in midair, stared back at him. They were blindingly bright, as compared to the interior of the plane. Then again, how much light was there in the cargo hold?

His future brother-in-law and his wife-to-be were in a medium-sized pet carrier in the "animal section" of the cargo hold. The lady at the airport was clucking at his stinginess of putting a couple of cats into one box, but, seriously, would the two of them have it any other way? (Taking into consideration the additional claws they now possessed, he wouldn't want to get on their bad side.) Even then, he wasn't exactly capable of preventing them from doing _certain things_, especially since he could not watch over them twenty-four hours a day.

No matter how many rules they had broken, he hadn't wanted to leave them in the cargo hold, mostly because of the treatment they might get from the aeroplane's baggage loaders (whom he didn't have much trust in). However, the people at the counter had insisted that he handed the cats to them for storage in the cargo hold. The man gave his head a slight shake to rid himself of the subject.

Lee put on his earpieces and switched on the mini-television on the back of the seat in front of him. There was an animal documentary on air. After a few minutes of watching it, the man realised that it was on animal behaviour, moving on to the courtship and gestation period of cats. He flipped the channel. Why did everything bring him back to the subject of Ray and Mariah?

'Because of the fact that you've been housing and cooking for them for the past few days?' A little voice said in his mind. 'And also because they've been trying to annoy the hell out of you by acting ten times more loving around you than they usually do?'

Lee rolled his eyes. The little voice was right.

-Flashback-

_Mariah finished up the rest of her fried fish and licked her lips. She purred at her brother. 'That was nice, Lee.'_

_'Yeah, thanks for the dinner!' Ray added. The pink cat started to paw at her lips. _

_'I'm oily!'_

_'That's okay. I'll clean you up, Mari,' the black cat replied. Lee wasn't sure if the felines knew that he was capable of hearing their conversation. He was about to say something when Ray put his paws on the female's shoulders, leaning in to lick her face. The man could have sworn that he'd winked at her. _

_'Mm. You're delicious, Mari.'_

_'Ray! You're spreading the oil all over my face!' she exclaimed, although there was no sign of irritation or anger in her voice. The cat opened her mouth, pretending to bite him._

_'Aww… don't punish me, your Royal Highness… please?' Her fiancé gazed at her with big, pleading golden eyes. 'You're the most beautiful, nicest, and bestest living thing in the universe… Surely you don't want to torture a lowly thing like me?'_

_'Raymond Kon… You're so sweet and handsome…' She leaned closer to him…_

_"A-HEM!!!" Lee cleared his throat._

_'Oh!' The pink cat smiled awkwardly at him. 'Uh… why don't we go to the bathroom, Ray? I still need t o get this oil off my face…'_

_'Sure.' They leapt off the table, then turned in the direction of the stairs._

_'Oh, and, Mari?' Ray asked. Their voices could still be heard in Lee's mind. 'Have you noticed that we haven't any clothes on?'_

_'Uh huh. That means… we don't have to undress…' she replied slyly, her tail twitching. The two cats looked at each other out of the corner of their eyes. She could feel her brother's eyes boring into her back. 'Before we take a bath, I mean,' she added quickly. The couple laughed quietly._

(A/N: This part isn't in Lee's flashback.)

_'You think we heated him up, Ray?' she asked, cutting off their link to the man._

_'Of course, love. I'm absolutely positive we did.'_

_The pair laughed again, climbing the stairs._

-Another flashback-

_Lee climbed the stairs, heading to his room to sleep. As he neared Mariah's room (which was closer to the stairs than his), he heard voices in his head._

_'Shh! Ray! Are you sure Lee can't hear us?'_

_'I'm quite sure, Mari. I don't sense anything. I _think_.'_

_'Then… let's have some fun…'_

_'As long as you don't mind…' Ray said slowly._

_The man walked more slowly, passing his sister's room. He sneaked a glance in through the open door. The pink cat was pinned to the bed by the black feline. They sprang apart when he passed, grinning nervously at him. He narrowed his eyes, knowing that he didn't have enough right to pull them apart. Besides, it would cause more harm than good. They'd most probably die of heartbreak. Rabbits (or maybe the feline version of the species)._

(A/N: This part isn't in Lee's flashback.)

_The two cats winked at each other, then Mariah pounced on her fiancé once Lee passed her room. The black cat flipped on top of her, pawing her body._

(A/N: This is in Lee's flashback.)

_'Ray…' Lee heard her whisper. Then he thought he heard her gasp. The man tried to suppress the impulse to run back and fish them out of the already deep trouble they were in. He didn't have to – the voices stopped._

(A/N: This part isn't in Lee's flashback again.)

_'Your brother should be quite annoyed and worked up by now, Mariah.' The black cat gave the other feline an affectionate lick._

_She smirked. 'With what we've fed him, it's little wonder.'_

_'Mariah?'_

_'Yeah –' Before she could finish her sentence, a genuine, pleasured gasp escaped her throat. She squeezed her eyes shut. 'Ray…'_

-End flashback-

A particularly hard 'chink' of metal on glass brought the man back to reality He focused back on the screen. Lee vaguely wondered what they were up to now. The possibilities were not very innocent…

* * *

'Ray… I don't like this pet carrier at all…' The pink cat stood up, stretched, then walked towards the door, looking out. It was cold and noisy. Countless other pets were stored in the same compartment, hissing, growling, screeching… They were mostly kept in their own separate cages. At least she was luckier. Much luckier, in her point of view. Something further inside the box stirred.

Her partner opened his eyes, noticing her shivers almost immediately. The cotton blanket at the base of the carrier certainly did not do much to trap heat. Lee was not to be blamed, since he had not been to the cargo hold before.

Lying on his stomach, he smiled warmly at her, twitching his tail. 'Come back here, girl. I'm warmer…'

She sighed, closing her eyes for a moment, then opening them again to gaze softly at him 'You're right.'

The feline trod over to him, brushing her lips against his in a feathery kiss. Light as it was, it was still enough to send shivers down their spines. Ray turned his head to look at her as she stepped further back, then turned a tight circle so that she was standing beside him. Lowering herself, she snuggled up to him, tucking her head under his chin.

'You are _so_ warm, Ray… You're so warm and cozy…' She tilted her head up and parted her lips, so that her fangs brushed against his neck. (She knew that it wouldn't hurt him, from the layer of raven fur that protected his skin.) He quivered, bending down to nuzzle the base of her neck. She returned the favour by running her paws down his front, placing them on his side.

'That tickles, Mari!' He turned to nibble on her ear affectionately. 'I want to love you…'

The pink cat raised her head to give him a confused look, blinking once. 'What do you mean, Ray?'

'I really want to _love_ you, Mari…'

Realisation dawned on her. 'Ohhh… I get what you mean… and want… Well, it isn't as if I have anything to say against it, have I?' she purred, leaning towards him until the fur on their head was almost touching.

He smiled, starting to breathe more heavily as the prospect of another steamy session arose and winked at them, tempting…

'I hope not…' His breath fanned on her nose as he drew closer…

* * *

Lee took the pet carrier off the counter of the Special Goods office, then headed out, towards the gate of the Arrival Hall. His plain cloth bag was slung over his shoulder. Oh boy, were the Bladebreakers going to be shocked. Well, he agreed to bring the pair to the airport, mostly because he was going to stay with a close cousin of his and Mariah's for some time in Japan, until the Bladebreakers' reunion was over, then he could bring the two back to the White Tiger Village.

The Chinese man headed towards the place where they were supposed to meet. As he neared it, he caught sight of the unmistakable slate-haired man leaning against a wall.

Kai Hiwatari was a handsome man of twenty, pushing twenty-one. The air around him was the same as always, and his silence did not do anything to alter the impression of himself on others. The only thing which was different about him were the mahogany eyes that were kept open. A slate eyebrow was raised as he noticed the leader of the White Tigers.

Talking rather animatedly beside Kai were two other young men, one with blonde hair and sky-blue orbs, the other a year younger, with chestnut-brown hair and glasses which shielded his eyes. Max Mizuhara was nearly twenty, although he still retained his childish grin and attitude. However, if one were to look closer, he had somewhat matured, and there was something else in his eyes, other than just fun and laughter.

Kenny, a young man of eighteen, had grown taller, but he was still shorter than the average height of most young men. A laptop was clutched under his arm. It was a new model, though – slimmer and handier – and Lee was sure that Dizzi had moved into the new one. Kenny was pretty much the same as he had been a few years ago – nerdy.

Lee took a deep breath, before stepping forward with the pet carrier. Kai nodded civilly at him, but said nothing. Lee nodded back. Max and Kenny turned immediately to face him.

"Hey Lee!" Max exclaimed, with a curious expression on his face. "We haven't seen you in a long time! Where's Ray, though?"

"Ray's supposed to meet us here. Do you know where he is?" Kenny asked, spectacles slipping off his nose. He raised a hand to push them back.

Lee put the pet carrier down, undoing the clasp. "Yes, I do know where he is. Right here."

He swung the door open. The two felines inside took a deep breath, mentally preparing themselves for a whole lot of questions. 'Here goes nothing.'

The black cat stepped out, closely followed by his pink companion.

'Uh… hi, guys! Long time no see!' Ray grinned at them. All three men jumped at his voice in their minds.

'Hi! Remember me?' The other cat winked. 'I'm Mariah.'

The ex-Bladebreakers continued to stare for a while, dumfounded, until Max broke out of his trance. Kai remained quiet, and Kenny peered at them through his spectacles.

"I'm very pleased to see you too. Now – would you mind telling us how you became…" The blonde man paused for a while, as though trying to ascertain that Ray and Mariah _were_ cats, then, finding no hallucination, continued, "… cats?"

Ray sat down and shrugged. 'There was some prophecy that fell upon us, and we happened to fulfill it, so the next thing we knew, we were cats. Simple as that.'

"What prophecy?" Kai had finally spoken, his forehead furrowing as he frowned at them.

"Well, Ray, Mariah, I'll leave you here now," Lee said, kneeling down and patting both cats on the back. "Take care of my sister, Ray. I'll see you in a month."

'Bye, Lee,' the two cats chorused, watching him leave.

"Where's he going?" Max eyed him in puzzlement. "He's not coming with us?"

'He's going to stay with one of his cousins, then come and fetch us after our team gathering,' Ray replied, motioning for Mariah, who was also sitting, to move closer to him. She grinned and shifted over.

"Ray, would you mind explaining how you can speak in our minds?" the chestnut-haired man opened his laptop, typing into it.

'Out bit beasts link us to the owners of other bit beasts,' the pink cat said simply. 'So you can hear us.'

"My, you two look a nice couple, even as cats." Dizzi commented. "I knew both of you were going to end up together sooner or later, and look – I'm right!"

'Thank you.' Mariah smiled happily.

"Where's Tyson?"

"Hey guys!" A navy-haired man of nineteen shouted, running towards them. "Sorry I'm late! Where's Ray? I thought he was bringing someone along."

He reached them, panting slightly, before catching sight of the cats. "Wow! Cats!"

Tyson dropped to the front of the pink cat, trying to taunt her. "Meow!"

Ray took a warning step forward. 'Tyson…'

He blinked. "You can talk?"

"That's Ray and Mariah, buddy! Max thumped him on the back. "We'll explain later in the car! Right, Kai?"

"Wha– now?" Tyson blinked in confusion.

Kai nodded, turning towards the exit, his hands in his pockets. "It's a limo."

Pausing, he turned his head to look at the black feline. "I see that you've kept your word and brought your girlfriend along, Ray."

All eyes focused on them.

The cats looked at each other, then back at him. 'Actually, Kai, I've brought my fiancée along.'

The slate-haired man's lips twitched upwards in a small smile. "Congrats, then."

Turning to face the rest of the group, he said, "Follow me."

* * *

The group of young men were done congratulating the couple, and the whole gang was currently engaged in a lively conversation in Kai's limousine. Max, Kenny and Kai sat on one side of the car, while Mariah, Ray and Tyson were on the other side. The subject was changed to one of bit beasts and such, and this was making the two creatures in the car rather restless, being unusual themselves as well. Ray sneaked a glance at Mariah, and she smiled at him, locking her eyes with his. Kai was talking more now, although Tyson, Max and Kenny still dominated the conversation, the former two chatting away without stopping, while the latter bringing in reality checks.

However, Max, too, was slowly getting distracted. He drifted in and out of the conversation, seeing things in his mind that no one would ever dream he'd have.

-Some time ago-

_Max felt a pair of eyes on him. Retrieving Draciel from the practice dish, he whipped around, only to see honey-coloured hair disappear around a corner. For some reason, his stomach jolted, and his heartbeats quickened. He didn't need to guess who it was. He already knew it. Emily. _

_Weirdly, every time he saw her, there would be this strange, fluttering feeling in his heart, and he would be especially happy, not mentioning the dreams he increasingly had of her. Emily was a nice name, and he loved to have it roll on his tongue… Was he… falling in love with her?_

_The sixteen-year-old hurried after her. She was just ten metres away from him when – _

_"Hey, Emily, would you mind handing these to Judy?" Michael flashed a grin at her, giving her a thick stack of notes. She smiled back at him. Max felt a bubble of something forming in his midriff. Jealousy? There couldn't be anything between them, could there?_

_As much as he didn't want to admit it, he cared for her, not just like caring for any friend, but for someone closer to him…_

_'Follow your heart, young one,' Draciel's deep voice rang out in his mind._

_The blonde nodded, then waited until she'd given the papers to his mother, before approaching her._

_"Hi, Emily! Want to go out for an ice cream?" Max heard himself say. He wasn't ready for the real thing yet, although he saw her eyes brighten when he'd called her, then dull a little when he asked her out. She was still brighter than usual, though. He felt some blood rush up to his cheeks. 'Oh no…please don't let her laugh at me…'_

_His eyes locked with her azure ones. They were so… beautiful… He almost felt like he could lose himself in them…_

_She didn't laugh. Instead, she gave him a small, sweet smile, her cheeks also colouring. "Sure, Max. I'd love to."_

_A big grin plastered itself on his face as they headed out of the building. Was it him, or did he see something else in her eyes?_

-Scene change-

_It was a bright, sunny day, perfect for something, but what? Eighteen-year-old Max stood at a window, looking out at the city. His gaze landed on the park."Hi, Max!" Are you busy now?" Just the voice alone made his breath catch in his throat, and his heart raced. He turned himself around, coming face-to-face with the azure eyes that he had grown to… like? Love? He kept himself calm, trying not to give away his great happiness upon seeing her._

_"Hey, Emily! No, I'm not busy."_

_"Then…How about a walk in the park?" She looked hopefully at him. He gave her a cheerful smile._

_"Sure! I'd love to! In fact, I was thinking that the park is a wonderful place to be today." It was then that he knew what the day was perfect for._

_The birds were chirping when they reached their destination. Max felt his already-fast heartbeat accelerate. They walked in silence, heading towards the centre of the park. The stone pavilion drew into sight, and companionably, they walked under the shade of the white-tiled roof. The blonde man paused to pick a few stalks of flowers, then followed her in._

_"I've always loved this place," the young woman of eighteen breathed, resting her hands on the stone railings, facing the rest of the park._

_"Me too." The man was beside her, holding a bunch of flowers out to her. "These are for you, Emily."_

_She couldn't help noticing the sincerity in his eyes. A light blush formed across her cheeks. "Thank you, Max," she said, reaching out with both hands to accept his gift. Their fingers brushed against each other's, and both of them reddened._

_"You know, Emily, I'd really like you to know something…" Max was still blushing, but he held eye contact with her. Her sky-blue eyes shone with unspoken hope. 'Is he going to-?'_

_A surge of warmth spread from his heart, to the rest of his body. "I really like you, Emily."_

_A big smile spread across her face, and she wrapped her arms around his shoulders. "You're the nicest, Max…"_

_Her answer was all that mattered to him as he hugged her around her back. They needn't hide their feelings now…_

-Scene change-

_The air-conditioned room was getting a little too cold. Max sat in front of his mother's desk in her office, wondering what she called him there for. The empty chair behind the table was waiting to be occupied. Judy had told him that she might take a while before she arrived. If only he had company… The door opened, and footsteps could be heard behind him. Before he could turn to see who it was, a figure sunk into the chair beside him. Someone with honey hair and glasses, which framed her pretty azure eyes."Hi, Max. Judy told me to come here, but I wasn't expecting you…" Emily smiled at him, that sweet, heartwarming smile of hers… He smiled back at her, placing a hand on the clasped ones on her lap. Something stirred in his mind. _

_"Emily, the Bladebreakers are organising a team reunion in __Japan__ for a month. D'you want to come with me? It's next Monday."_

_Her face lit up. "Sure! But – I have to go somewhere else in __Japan__ first. I'll meet you on the first day of your arrival, 'cause that's the last day of my project there."_

_"That'll be great!" Max took a deep breath, then leaned towards her. She watched, stunned, as he placed a gentle kiss on her lips. They were as soft as they seemed to be, and he was surprised to find them on his again after he pulled away. Emily wrapped her arms around his neck, drawing him closer into a deeper kiss. What had he to lose? The man slid his arms around her back to pull her closer._

_Voices could suddenly be heard outside the office door. They broke apart, meeting each other's eyes for a second, before turning away from each other. The door opened, and Judy stepped inside. Max tried his best to get rid of the blush on his face._

_"I see you two have been waiting for me. I apologise for having to keep you two up for so long." The older woman took her seat, almost immediately noticing her son's behaviour. She smiled at him, then at Emily._

-End of scene-

'Max!'

The aforementioned man snapped back to reality. He looked around. Tyson, Kenny and Kai were still talking, with Dizzi joining in occasionally. The two cats, however, were watching him with their golden eyes. In a single, synchronised movement, they jumped off their seat, padding over to him, then getting onto the cushioned seat beside his. Kenny was to his other side, and so was undisturbed.

'You looked distracted, Max,' the pink feline commented. The man looked at the others. They didn't seem to have heard what she'd said. 'Don't worry. Only Ray and I are linked to you at the moment. The rest can't hear us.'

'You know, Maxie, I think you were thinking very deeply. About someone.' the black cat remarked, fixing his eyes on the man.

"How… did you know?" he asked them in a low voice.

'I recognised that emotion in your eyes.' Mariah turned to her fiancé. 'Ray _always_ looks at me that way…' She rubbed herself against him, a low purr emitting from her throat. The black cat smiled at her, then faced Max.

'You have a thing for Emily, Max?'

The blonde man nodded slowly, blushing a little.

'We won't laugh at you, you know. Tell me, does she know?' Ray patted his hand.

"Yeah…"

'Is she coming to the reunion, then?' Mariah asked curiously, looking up at Max again.

"She'll be arriving later." Max smiled happily.

'Good for you, then, Max. And I won't be the only female around.' The pink cat flashed a smile at him, so that her fangs were revealed.

'We'll leave you to your… thoughts now, Max.' Ray gave Mariah a discreet lick on her neck.

The man watched as the two cats jumped back to their seats, tumbling over each other. Their laughter could be heard in his mind, until the link between them was cut. Their compatibility struck him. They deserved to be together.

'Ray?'

'Yeah, Mari?' He was leaning in to lick her neck…

'Can we save this for later?' She seemed a little uncomfortable, although it wasn't caused by him. He nuzzled her. Shivers ran down her spine.

'Why?' The black cat seemed rather reluctant to part with her.

'Kai's looking at us.'

'Good point…' He pulled away from her, immediately longing for contact with her again. Both cats got up, sitting quietly at their places. Ray grinned sheepishly at Kai. The slate-haired man turned away, but not before giving him a look which said, 'I don't care what you do with your fiancée. It is not my business.'

Nevertheless, the group, with the exception of Max, continued participating in the conversation, waiting to get to Kai's mansion.

* * *

How did you people find the chapter? I know it wasn't really up to standard... Review to let me know if you think so! And to all Ray/Mariah fans, remember to go to the C2 comm to subscribe!!!

www .fanfiction. net /c2/7939/0/1/

So remove the spacings and paste it in your web browser, then GO SUBSCRIBE!!!


	4. Arrival and A Day Out

Hello again everybody! It's been some time since this was last updated…

Important note: I'm going to be really busy this year, so I don't know when I can update… Check my bio or my LJ – I'll put up the possible dates I'm posting chapters now and then.

Also, to those of you who don't know about it, I've posted a Ray/Mariah Christmas fic, titled Just For You, so go R&R it!

**Galux Kitty –** Kai doesn't really mean any harm… :D I'm glad you thought Tyson was funny! –covers ear– I've updated!

**Mountain Galux – **I'm glad you liked the previous chappie! Don't worry – Max and Emily won't get turned into something else. :)

**(You didn't leave a name) – **Thanks for the comment!

**virtual white tiger – **Thanks a lot! I think there're plenty of nice Ray/Mariah fics out there, though…

**Kaila – **Thanks for the suggestion! And sorry for the flashbacks being confusing…

**fluffys-sidekick – **I've updated!

**Bloody Mary – **LOL Kai isn't really a pervert… Ray and Mariah were torturing Lee for fun, as horrible as it sounds…

**grand admiral chelli – **Thanks for the review! And yes… limousines are nice…

**Paris**** Super Girls - **:) I'm glad you liked the chapter! Kai _was_ a little weird…

**Arrhythmic Song – **Is your comp still working? o.o Thanks for the review! :)

**ray-is-sexy – **LOL Thank you! No, Ray and Mariah won't be cats forever… ;)

**Kilala-kat-ex - **:) Thanks for the review!

And now… On with the chappie!

**Feline Instincts  
****By Aquarius Galuxy  
****Chapter Four: Arrival and A Day Out**

The sleek, black limousine pulled up in front of a huge mansion, stopping to let its passengers out. A figure stood before the tall, black gates. Max's heart skipped a beat as he caught the eyes of the orange-haired woman. She smiled at him. A slight blush rose in his cheeks. Thankfully, the other Bladebreakers did not notice it as they filed out of the vehicle.

They exchanged greetings, before the eighteen-year-old waved at them, holding a medium-sized bag in her other hand. Her blue orbs drifted over the Bladebreakers, the cats, and finally landed on the blonde man. _Her_ Max. Her gaze lingered on him for a while, before they returned to the two cats. "And the two cats are –?"

'Ray and Mariah. Nice to meet you again, Emily,' Ray's voice echoed in her mind. Her eyes widened. 'We'll explain the feline forms to you later.'

The limousine drove off under Kai's command. It was then that Emily noticed the proximity of the two cats. She smiled to herself when she spotted the diamond ring on the pink cat's left forepaw.

"We'll have dinner at my house," Kai said suddenly. "It's just a short walk from here. He moved his head in the direction of the mansion.

A five-storey high building loomed up before them. It wasn't sky-scraping, but it spanned over a large area of land, and, just by the look of it, the structure contained at least sixty rooms at the front. There was a large fountain inside, with a number of trees and shrubs in the garden. However, the main focus was still the mansion. Pure white and stately, it had tall, pale blue glass windows, which were rather elegantly made. The sun's orange rays bounced off the navy-blue tiles and glittered down at the group. There was an air of calm around the whole place, which could be expected of its owner.

"_House_?" Tyson questioned incredulously. "Kai, this is a _mansion_!"

The slate-haired man shrugged. "Call it what you want, but bear in mind that it's my property."

'What are we waiting here for?' Mariah asked a little impatiently. 'Shouldn't we go in, instead of standing here rather pointlessly?'

Kai turned and led the way in.

* * *

She held a pale green shirt by the shoulders, scrutinizing it. It was one of her favourites, and she was deciding on whether she should wear it afterwards.

There was a soft knock on the door. Emily put the shirt, which she had settled on for later, back into her bag. The possibilities of who could be at the door were few, although there was one person who stood higher than the rest…

Sighing, the woman padded over to the door. She opened it and peered out, so that a crack of the hallway showed through, before pulling the door wide open with a smile. Her heartbeat quickened. "Max! Have you finished unpacking already? I'm only half done!"

He grinned sheepishly. "Actually, I've just dumped my clothes into the cupboard… So that I can come over to see you."

He stepped into the room, closing the door. Max lowered himself onto her bed, his face still towards her. "So, Emily… How've you been these few days?"

"Not very well… Because you weren't with me, Max." She clasped her hands behind her back, watching the man. He seemed as cheerful as always, though slightly more so now. He stood up, then walked to stand in front of her. She smiled innocently at him. Slipping his arms around her waist, he pulled her closer, placing his head beside hers.

"I missed you. And you were in my mind the whole time," he murmured in her ear. She wrapped her arms around him, resting her head on his shoulder. A mischievous spark shot through her. She brushed her lips against his neck. He drew a sharp breath and shivered, hugging her more tightly to him. "I love you, Emily."

Her eyes softened. "Same here, Max."

* * *

'It was really nice of you to provide cushions for Mari and me to prop ourselves up on, Kai.' Ray smiled gratefully at the slate-haired man, over the almost finished meal on the table. The group was more or less done with dinner, with the exception of Tyson, who was still spooning the leftovers into his mouth.

"Well, as the host, it's my pleasure to do so, Ray," Kai replied with a small smile. On the other side of the table, Tyson finished up the last of the dinner with a loud burp, gaining narrowed eyes from everybody else.

The navy-haired man grinned. "Well, what're we going to do next?"

"We could… catch up on things, and find out what everybody's been up to these years…" Kenny suggested. "I mean, we can't have spent so much time doing nothing, can we?"

"Great idea, Chief!" Max exclaimed. "Let's seat somewhere and share what we been through so far!"

Nobody seemed to oppose, so Kai brought them to an adjoining room, where chairs were grouped around a fireplace, and a small fire had already been started, although it wasn't really cold. They seated themselves, glancing around at each other.

"Who wants to tell first?" Tyson asked excitedly, watching to see who volunteered.

'Hey, you can start, Tyson,' Ray suggested. 'We'll continue after you.'

The rest of the people nodded at his words, agreeing that the navy-haired man should begin.

Tyson looked around at them smugly, a grin on his face. "Due to popular demand, I'll start first."

* * *

He jumped down from the open window, landing softly on the grass beside the pink cat. She cast him a mischievous look, then headed off, inviting him to follow her. Ray watched as she started forward, walking in front of him, before letting the tip of her tail brush under his chin. He grinned and caught up with her, strolling at her side.

Night had fallen, and the street lamps had been turned on, so that orange streams of light illuminated the streets. The grounds of the Hiwatari mansion had not been lighted properly, however, so that shadows were everywhere, and it would be difficult for them to find their way around, if not for their feline senses. The moon suddenly peeked out from behind a cloud, and visibility was very much improved.

Before long, they had made their way to the metal gates at the front of the mansion. The road was rather deserted, with an occasional car speeding along the lanes every so often. It was lonely, and this made it the perfect night out... It was just them, alone…

Both cats slipped out from the narrow gaps between the iron bars, so that they were now out of the mansion grounds. It felt strange to be walking alone as felines, along a deserted city street. Both did not have any plans on what they were going to do, merely knowing that they would suit their whims, and follow whatever the other thought of.

They walked in companionable silence, having no idea where their feet were taking them. As long as they knew the way back to the mansion, it would be fine wherever they went.

Now that they were felines, what did Ray think of her? She _did_ prefer it when she had her human form… Personally, she thought she looked nicer as a human… What if… She paused and looked away.

'Ray? Am I uglier now? Do you love me less because of it?'

He stopped walking and faced her, eyes widened. 'Why would you say that?'

She squeezed her eyes shut. 'I don't know… I just… feel that I look worse…'

How could she think that? 'Far from that, Mari… I love you just as much now, if not more, and I always will. You're not uglier, love. You're as beautiful as you were in the human form, both inside and out. You're the same girl I fell in love with from years ago, and you're still the same, wonderful female I'm deeply in love with now.'

The pink cat raised her head, looking at him softly. 'Thanks, Ray… I needed that. And… I love you too… with all my heart and soul…'

He smiled and nuzzled her. 'I know…'

She took a deep breath, then released it, letting her tail rub against his. 'Let's walk on.'

Ray nodded, glad that she was back to normal, and feeling fine. They continued to move along the empty pavement, not knowing how things would follow from there, only that they were happy and content then.

What else could possibly happen?

A growl sounded, followed closely by a hiss, as a large, ginger cat sprung at them from the top of a wall, landing in front of them. It was a male, and it headed for them slowly, threatening. It seemed to have an eye for the pink feline, who backed away fearfully – they did not have the strength of humans… Their bodies had been modified.

'Ray…' She stepped closer to her fiancé, unsure as to what they should do. Running was not an option –they did not have any idea what the aggressor could do, and it could overcome boundaries they crossed.

The ginger cat glanced purposefully at Mariah, before staring at Ray, its stance challenging. Didn't it have any respect for relationships already built?

'Mari… Stay back. I don't want you to get hurt.' He couldn't just leave her alone, unprotected and open to that ginger cat…

'But Ray…' She was worried for him. Both of them had no experience with other cats before.

'I can't just stand aside and watch him… do anything to you.' He glanced at her. 'If something bad happens, just run, okay?'

She backed away silently as the ginger cat advanced on her, seemingly ignoring the black feline, until Ray stepped forward and growled warningly at it. Only then did it regard the other male warily, not giving in.

The golden eyes narrowed, pupils reducing to slits. His claws were unsheathed, clicking impatiently on the concrete pavement. He didn't want anybody to get hurt, especially the pink cat.

They circled each other, both studying his opponent, neither making a move first. With a hiss, the ginger cat sprung on the raven one, nearly scratching him with its claws. Ray avoided the attack, standing his ground, before swiping out at the other as a clear warning.

That only seemed to make the catfight more serious and realistic as they snarled at each other, challenging the other to make the next move. The ginger cat reared suddenly and aimed a paw at the black feline, targeting to prove itself superior by defeating its opponent.

Ray reared up too, both to fend for himself as well as to prevent the other cat from having an added advantage over him. He clawed at the ginger cat, trying to dodge most of its moves. This wasn't an inexperienced animal… A swipe here, another there… He blamed himself for not being prepared. He needed to concentrate… Much energy was being wasted…

They exchanged attacks, sometimes managing to avoid harmful attacks, sometimes getting on the bad side of luck. If they didn't stop soon, he wasn't going to be able to keep it up… He was stronger as a human, and he did not have access to that form at the moment.

An unexpected force on his left shoulder caused him to fall to the ground. The wind was knocked out of him. Pain seared up his flesh. He could only have been cut. Gathering his strength, he raised his head and saw the ginger cat stepping purposefully towards the female. She hissed and spat at him, backing away.

'Run, Mari…' He nodded for her to go, trying to find strength in his body.

'I can't leave you here…' She cast a worried glance at him, scratching at the ginger cat when it got too close.

He couldn't let her be taken by that cat… Strength suddenly welled in his form, and he got up, snarling, sprinting at the male to knock it down on its side with his paws. A deep growl sounded from his throat, and he stood protectively before her, chest heaving slightly from his effort.

Ray watched the ginger cat as it got up. The growl continued to sound. He wasn't going to stop until it left… He would protect Mariah with his life.

Golden orbs flashed as the ginger cat got up, facing them. It was clear that neither of them wanted its company, and it watched them for a moment or two, before stalking off.

Ray turned to the pink cat in concern, breathing deeply to regain his breath. His shoulder was hurting… 'Mari… Are you okay?'

'Yeah… But you're not…' She looked at the cut on his shoulder. The blood was drying up, but she was still worried about him… Was he going to get an infection? She hoped not… A gasp escaped her lips when a white glow surrounded his form.

He felt suddenly light… almost as if he could just fall asleep on the spot. The sting from his shoulder was gone. What was happening? The bout of lethargy fell away, and he was wide awake once more.

'Mari, what just happened?' She looked shocked…

'This white light enveloped you… then your cut disappeared…'

Strange… 'Remember, this happened you two years back…'

'Yeah…' She walked closer to him, rubbing her body against his. 'Let's go back… I don't think the answer to that will come just yet.'

He nodded, turning back with her at his side.

'Mari?'

'Yeah, Ray?'

'I love you.'

'I love you too…'

Little else happened along their return to the mansion, and they found themselves back in their room around fifteen minutes later. It was dark all around, and both of them preferred the lights to be off.

The black cat leapt onto the bed, waiting as she followed and jumped on him. A laugh escaped his lips, and he nuzzled her gently, then pinned her under him. She lay on her back, waving her tail slightly. There was a sly smile on her lips.

She wrapped her paws around his back, pulling him down to her. He gave her jawbone a playful nibble, shivering slightly when she ran her paws softly down her sides. A low growl sounded from his throat, highly unlike the ones he last made. He turned to nuzzle the side of her neck.

The pink feline purred and snuggled closer to him, her breath catching in her throat when he reared his head, squirming to move himself down, so that his head was level with her belly. Ray rubbed his head against her, then started to lick her slowly.

Mariah panted, her eyes squeezed shut. She gasped when he moved further down, and she opened her eyes again, now clouded with passion. She was hungry for more…

He looked up at her, smiling a little, before he growled softly again when she pounced on him, bringing him onto his back. He purred when she pawed at him, causing her to smile.

'Mari…' He leaned up to graze his fangs against her neck…

* * *

The large dining room was silent, with the exception of the light sounds of the butlers and maids walking in and out of the kitchen doors to carry breakfast into the room. The polished teak table was already laid with food and cutlery. All that was needed now was the presence of guests in the room. Kai paced leisurely on the marble floor, waiting for the rest of the people to arrive.

They came in pairs, except for Kenny, who walked down the stairs alone. Apparently, Tyson wasn't awake yet. However, it was common knowledge that he would come once the smell of food wafted to his nose.

The clatter of feet came a few seconds later as the navy-haired man thundered down the stairs, dressed haphazardly in a neon red T-shirt and dark blue jeans. His socks were mismatched, and his shoelaces were half-tied, so that it was a wonder that he did not trip along the way.

His navy-blue eyes glittered somewhat greedily as he sat opposite Kai at the dining table. The silver spoon was just a flash as he scooped large spoonfuls of food into the cavern-like mouth. Everyone at the table had perked up when he came, eating faster due to their past experiences with the nineteen-year-old. Each finished with a sigh of relief, as Tyson did not get to polish off the food on the common plates before they had their fill, and hence he could not snatch food off their plates.

'What plans do we have for today?' Ray asked curiously. He was greeted with blank faces, except for Tyson, who was still stuffing his face.

'We could… go for a picnic,' suggested Kenny. No one disagreed, so it was settled that all of them would have lunch on a hilltop.

* * *

Tyson slouched and pretended to pant, as they walked along a dirt path up a steep hill. Trees grew sparsely on the grassy slopes, and there were points where the land was suddenly ended with a steep drop down. The early morning sun shone weakly down on them.

"Tyson, we're not even midway up this _hill_!" Kenny exclaimed exasperatedly.

"Chill out, Kenny. I was just pretending. See?" The navy-haired man straightened, prancing around and breathing normally. "I have lots of energy left! I can almost hear all my fans cheering me on, telling me to conquer this… mountain of a hill…"

"More like trying to convince us that you're not tired, when you are obviously so," Kai said in slight annoyance.

"Who said so? I was telling the truth!" Tyson retorted indignantly, making a face at the slate-haired man.

"Suit yourself. And conserve you energy, Tyson. No one's going to carry you if you can't walk any further," Kai replied rather coldly.

"Hmph." The former pouted and turned away.

Max looked between the two of them some distance away, then grinned and remarked to Emily, "They're still the same as always."

She gave him a small smile, sky-blue eyes almost laughing. She reached out and held his hand. Max stepped closer to her for some reason he hadn't figured out yet, merely wanting to enjoy the time with her.

Ray smiled, giving the feline next to him a nudge and nodding in the direction of the two people. She caught what he was looking at, and produced a smile identical to his.

The pink cat then slunk in front of him, rubbing her head under his chin, then finished off with brushing her tail against his neck, causing him to shiver slightly. She grinned cheekily at the black cat, then ran forward, to the rest of the group. 'Can't catch me, Ray!'

He grinned back, breaking into a run after her. 'Oh, I will!'

The black cat gained on her, as she dashed past Tyson, Kai and Kenny, climbing the steep slope. She wasn't running at her fastest, but it was enough to cover some distance.

'I'm coming!' he said in her mind, and she turned around, in time to see a black shape lift off he ground and towards her. She didn't have time to move. A split second later, Ray brought her to the ground, standing over her with a triumphant grin on his face.

'I told you.'

Mariah leaned up and pushed him back playfully. They wobbled on the sloped surface, then started to tilt… All of a sudden, they rolled down the slope, one on top of another. They laughed, the breeze running through their fur – until they realised that they were gathering speed.

'Ray! What should we do?' Their surroundings flashed by them as they turned in circles, and wind rushed through their short fur, so that the silken threads waved violently. The ground was hard and bumpy against their bodies.

The two cats were just flashes of pink and black to everyone else. 'I'm trying to think!'

What if they hit a rock and broke their necks? What if they rolled off a cliff? What if they got impaled on something or other? Their hearts were thumping. If they died, at least they'd be in each other's arms… Panic over took them, and they closed their eyes, prepared for the worst, when –

Whumph!

Ray collided against a soft, prickly object, although it was hard at some places. The pink cat stopped behind him, and they opened their eyes, weak with relief. They were still alive. A bush was in their path, and it had broken their tumble down the hill when they crashed into it. If it hadn't been there…

They panted, dizzy from the experience. The black cat was suddenly sober. His eyes shimmered as he realised the implications of the tumble. 'I'm sorry, Mari… It was my fault. I nearly got us killed…'

He turned away guiltily, positive that Mariah wouldn't want to go near him any more. He had nearly ended the life of the one he cherished most – even more than he valued himself. She meant the world to him – nothing less. He couldn't believe that he had so carelessly put her within the reach of the arms of death… He didn't – couldn't – deserve her… although being away from her would make his life unbearable… But at least she would be better off without him… He pulled himself away from her.

Mariah widened her eyes in shock, shaking her head disbelievingly. She scrambled up to face the black cat. What was he talking about? He turned away from her, his head down.

'Ray! Look at me! It was _my_ fault, not yours!' A strangled meow escaped her lips. '_I_ caused you to chase me. _I_ pushed you down. _I_ –'

'_I_ chased you. _I_ pounced on you,' he interrupted, then continued desolately, disappointed in himself. 'I… put you in danger… Even if you forgave me, I wouldn't be able to forgive myself… Just leave me alone… perhaps you'd be… better off without me…'

The black cat took a few steps away, head and tail down, the very object of remorse. It took him all he had to say those few words, and his heart felt like it was being sliced slowly into pieces. But he would do anything to ensure her safety, even if it meant losing his life or breaking up with her… That thought caused him to feel like he was slowly being grated into pieces as he imagined the days ahead without her… He'd wanted so much to be with her, and now… His eyes moistened, and he turned further away to hide his expression. He took another step forward.

She ran in front of him, stopping him in his tracks. Her eyes gazed into his, conveying the deep hurt she felt. 'Ray! There's nothing to forgive! I don't blame you – I never did!'

Placing her paws on his chest, she pushed him to a sitting position, then backwards and onto the ground. She pinned him down, his back to the sand and flat rock surface. Mariah continued in a softer voice, growing louder as she spoke. 'Ray… I still love you… Why else would I give myself to you? Why else would I agree to marry you? Why else am I prepared to bear your child?!'

The pink feline nuzzled him softly. 'Don't blame yourself, okay? It isn't your fault.'

He looked up at her, his golden orbs shimmering with love. She gave him a small smile, licking his nose. Ray nuzzled her back. 'I love you too, Mari.'

Her eyes softened. 'Come on. Let's get up.'

They got to their feet, walking out from behind the bush. Somehow, they had managed to move away from sight, so that the rest of the group had no idea what had gone on between them.

Everybody else looked away from them, understandably confused after listening to all the meows, purrs and growls. They had decided to take a rest, planning to ascend the hill when the two cats were done.

The group continued to climb the hill, this time sticking closer to each other, so that nothing else dangerous happened.

* * *

It was noon by the time they reached the crown of the hill, almost tired out. The view from the hilltop more than made up for it, though, and they were content with themselves.

Emily pulled a camera from her backpack, walking near the edge of the hilltop. She took a deep breath, then exhaled. Thin wisps of clouds were scattered over the azure sky. Bluish-grey mountains and evergreen trees stretched out for miles, as far as the eye could see. (A/N: Sorry if the descriptions don't fit…) A gentle breeze blew, ruffling her hair.

"This is so beautiful…" she breathed, raising her camera to take a photograph of the scenery.

"I agree," a voice said behind her. The familiar fluttering arose in her heart again. She turned around to see Max smiling at her. The corners of her lips pulled upwards. "Enjoying yourself?"

She nodded, stepping closer to him. The blonde man wrapped his arms around her in a hug, then pulled away, catching her hand. "Let's grab a bite."

Emily thought about refusing it – she wasn't hungry yet – when her stomach growled. She blushed, smiling sheepishly at Max, then led him in the direction of food.

Kai leaned against a large boulder, arms folded across his chest. He gazed out into the open skies, watching as the clouds floated slowly away. A couple of birds soared up, calling their loud, echoing cries. They rode on the air currents, drifting up, then gliding down in a graceful swoop.

'Time to relax…' Wait. Did he just think that? Those guys were really getting to him…

Kenny aimed the laptop's camera at their surroundings, typing furiously into the laptop. "This is where we are now, Dizzi."

"Nice! Perfect for my wallpaper. It brings such a nice change to this laptop, doesn't it Chief? At least I won't get bored with that sort of picture around," the bit beast chattered merrily. "You know, you _should_ go and scale hills more often. Take in the beautiful view, breathe in the uncontaminated air… Oh yeah, I can't do that…"

Tyson was, as expected, stuffing himself with food again. The amount of food in the basket was decreasing slowly, and he was starting to eye the food that Emily was sharing with Max.

Tucked away in a little corner were Ray and Mariah. The black cat watched on as she yawned, then laid her head against his neck, snuggling up to him, before mumbling a rather incoherent 'Good afternoon, Ray,' and falling asleep.

She seemed so… unworried… when she was in slumber, the very object of beauty, with her pink fur, her slim body… It was a pity her eyes were closed. He always got drawn into them if he gazed at her for too long… Ray lowered his head, burying his head in her fur, taking in lungfuls of her scent – one which he knew he would always love.

An image of the mysterious glow surrounding him last night floated into his mind. What exactly was it? He had a feeling it was magic, although he had no evidence of it. And he had another feeling that they would soon find out what it was…

* * *

So… How was the chapter? Remember to review! And go R&R my Christmas fic too! Thanks!


	5. The Infinite Lands Part One

Hello everyone, and welcome to the next chapter of Feline Instincts! I'm really sorry for updating so late… I'm really busy in school this year.

Note: If anybody's interested, I've written a Ray/Mariah lemon on AdultFanFictionNet, and the link to it can be found on my profile, since FFN doesn't allow hyperlinks to be put with the fics. Remember to review it!

This chapter goes out to all who bothered to return and review! ;) Thank you very much!

**Max-Tate –** Welcome back! :) I'm glad you like the story so far!

**Mountain Galux –** Thanks! This chapter should be longer than the previous one…

**Galux**** Kitty –** LOL The ginger cat won't bother them anymore. :) Hope you like this chappie! ;)

**ray-is-sexy**** –** No, the ginger cat didn't die… I could not bear to make Ray kill it. Glad that you liked the Christmas fic too!

**Flareod**** – **Thanks! lol Ray and Mariah will turn back really soon. ;)

**Bloody Mary –** :) I'm glad that you like the catfight! It was difficult to write…

**shadows**** can kill –** Thanks for the review! It's nice to know that you like this fic.

**Paris**** Super Girls **– It's okay. :) Everybody is busy at some time or other… I'm glad you like the catfight scene! ;) Thanks for everything!

**Feline Instincts  
****By Aquarius Galuxy  
****Chapter Five: The Infinite Lands (Part One)**

With some energy, he finally managed to lift his eyelids, waiting until his vision cleared, before he saw pink fur in his face. Was she still asleep? He raised his head, his eyes softening when he saw that she did not stir.

The slow, peaceful rise and fall of her chest told him that she was very much in dreamland, and from the look on her face, she was having a nice dream. A purr rose in her throat. He liked the way he was snuggled up against him… She was most probably tired from all that happened the night before…

Of course he loved her… She was the one he'd spent most of his time with all these years, and she knew him best, aside from Driger. But the white tiger spirit could never make him feel that flurry of excitement, that bubble of joy, that limitless concern that she brought out in him… Not to mention how well she understood him, and the countless ways she knew to comfort him and lighten his spirits…

Now that she had become a feline just like him, he still loved her just as much, if not more than ever. His love for her could only deepen… He'd always been attracted to her, even when they were kids. There was just this childish innocence about her, until her character developed and she wasn't just an ordinary village girl, but someone with hopes and dreams to excel in beyblading… Well, she proved herself to him, if not anyone else. She won his respect with her personality, and he compared every other girl to her… she was still the best.

And when he fell in love with her… everything about her was perfect, every moment he spent with her was priceless, and every smile of hers brightened his entire day. She was engaged to him… Nobody could separate them now, and he was glad for that. Should anything happen to her… His heart clenched. He couldn't bear to think about it. She was here, with him, and nothing else mattered.

His shoulder felt as if it had not even been hurt at all. To think that he'd been injured two nights ago… He'd felt strangely fine afterwards, not to mention that white glow which enveloped him. He thought it had gone for good, after so long, but for some reason, it came back. Why?

Ray rubbed his face against hers, pulling away slightly when she shifted. She moved closer to him in her sleep, shifting her paws down his body. He shivered lightly, burying his face in her fur. She always smelled so nice… His eyelids drooped to sharpen her scent. There was a small movement, before he felt something wet slide across his neck, followed by small, gentle points of pressure characterising the nips she sometimes gave him when she was in a playful mood.

He grinned and opened his eyes, raising his head to look at her. Her sleepy golden orbs twinkled at him, and she lifted her paw to place it against his cheek. The black cat leaned in to nuzzle her lovingly, a smile on his lips. 'You're awake…'

Her eyes widened in concern, and she pressed closer to him. 'You've been waiting long?'

The smile continued to play on his face. Time had passed really quickly when he was with her. That couldn't have been long… 'Not really…'

There was a moment of silence, before she spoke again. 'I'd do anything for you, Ray.'

'So would I...' He pressed a kiss to his lips, remembering her pleasured look some time ago. 'Hey, Mari, want to tell me what you were dreaming about? You were looking rather… happy just now…'

His eyes softened and his heart warmed at the delighted flush rising to her face. Mariah snuggled closer to him, rubbing her body against his. 'I was… dreaming of us… And you were being so sweet…'

'I was?' He blinked, smiling. His heart raced when she drew her fangs across his throat.

'Yes.' She gasped slightly when he pinned her down and nuzzled her again. It didn't seem like they were going to leave the room anytime soon…

* * *

The group of five humans and two cats exited the spacious dining room, following Kai as he led the way through the carpeted walkways and high-ceilinged rooms. It was a few minutes before they arrived at a lounge, which was furnished with armchairs and a glass-topped coffee table. The curtains were drawn to allow light to enter, and the place was almost welcoming.

There was little else for them to do except to get settled. Kai leaned back in his chair, calmly watching the people around him. He didn't really have any plans for that day…

Kenny was setting his laptop up, adding to Max and Emily's conversation about beyblading. They tried to get Tyson to join in, but failed rather miserably. It wasn't difficult to catch the secretive glances exchanged between the blonde man and the honey-haired woman, thought they hardly seemed to notice it themselves.

Ray and Mariah were seated next to him, leisurely gazing around the room. They seemed to be communicating between themselves too, from the way they turned to look at each other sometimes, with their lips pulled up in smiles. The playful swishes of the pink and black tails only told more about them, and he was somewhat surprised when both felines turned to look at him.

'Hey, Kai, want to talk?' Ray asked in his head, eyes twinkling with interest.

'Yeah. It wouldn't be nice for the captain to be left alone,' Mariah added. 'There's nothing for us to do now, anyway.'

It was a nice offer, but the man did not feel like taking it up. After all, considering the number of times he'd told Ray off for getting distracted by the White Tigers, especially Mariah, it wouldn't be fair to disturb them again. Something in his conscience reminded him that it wasn't just because of guilt, but also due to his low tolerance of the loving gestures they kept exchanging.

"Maybe later," the slate-haired man said as he shook his head, turning away to close the subject.

Tyson was till the rowdiest among them all, and he was going to talk, before he suddenly realised something and looked down upon the armchair which he was sitting. A grin crept onto his round face, and he started to bounce on the seat of the chair, slowly reaching greater heights.

Kai took a deep breath to suppress the budding irritation.

"Hey, Kai, the chairs are really bouncy, you know," Tyson said between bounces, seeming somewhat thoughtful. "So was the bed last night."

He stared at the navy-haired man. At this rate, he'd have to call in the furniture store to replace half the cushioned items in the mansion once the entire group left.

"Tyson, I'd appreciate it if you stopped that."

Everyone looked at him, and he halted. "Stop bouncing?"

Kai nodded, and he sighed, looking around. "So… What are we going to do today?"

The room was quiet as everyone racked their brains for something else to do. The organisers of the reunion had clearly forgotten to plan activities for the group.

It was almost too silent… The air was suddenly still. Did the pressure seem to be dropping? Kai looked around. A stack of papers ruffled at the corners. There couldn't have been wind – all the windows were closed… Nothing happened for the next few moments, until a strong gust raged within the room, and they were lifted into the air. Gravity seemed to have lost its effect…

Shock grew on all their faces when they began to spin in a circle, all their hearts beating wildly. What was happening? The room seemed to be moving in a blur as their hair whipped up in the wind. Max's hand found Emily's, grasping it tightly. Ray managed to hold on to Mariah, holding her close to himself with his paws. He feared for her… Would they die now? Would they be separated? Why was this happening? Panic was in her eyes. He knew it was in his too…

All of them exchanged looks of bewilderment. The room was darkening, and they were beginning to fade… This was like his dream, only worse… He buried his face in her fur. 'Mari – if anything happens, just remember that I love you…'

'I love you too, Ray…' she replied. Was this the last she would see of him?

They were losing sight of one another… Their energies were being drained… It was getting harder for them to stay awake…

"What's happening?" Tyson shouted above the howling of the wind. That was the last thing all of them heard, before it became pitch-black, and they lost consciousness.

* * *

A high chirp brought her attention away from the thick, dusty book she was studying, and onto a little creature, which was a hand tall, with a shimmering coat of feathers on its body. It was a Whisse, a little bat-like creature that had deep red eyes and sharp pointed ears. They were from another world, but some of them had migrated over the years, and now they made this land their home. They had the power of camouflage and teleportation, both of which could not be extended to other living beings, hence causing the locals to turn them into message carriers for a small tip in return.

The one standing at her window was hopping from one foot to another. It was carrying an urgent message.

Her azure eyes widened. She'd settled all her tasks for the day, unless… Surely the gates couldn't have opened this soon! Absently picking a few cookies from a glass jar on her desk, she headed over to the bird, holding the pieces out for the Whisse to inspect, before it took the pieces in its mouth and released the tightly-grasped scroll from its foot.

The animal tucked the food into a natural pouch on its chest, watching in anticipation as the auburn-haired woman picked the rolled-up piece of paper and flattened it out. Her eyes scanned over the short message scribbled hastily in black ink, and she frowned worriedly.

_Feliz, of the Infinite Lands, I fear that the opening of the gates has commenced. What is it that you have planned? You last said of a task for me. Hasten and reply. Melden. _

Melden… He was the appointed keeper of the gates, and a friend of hers. He had to be telling the truth. That meant that al her plans would be brought forward… Nobody was expecting it to happen now, the following month at the earliest. She wasn't prepared much, but it would have to do.

Bringing the paper back into the room, she dipped a slender, yet sturdy, twig in a vial of ink and smoothed the paper on the desk. Her reply was quickly scrawled under the first message. It wasn't neat, but the legibility was all that mattered.

_Direct the group of people from Earth through the gates of the Infinite Lands. I will handle the rest myself. You needn't worry, Melden. Many thanks. Cassandra._

She strode back to the window, rolling the scroll up and handing it to the Whisse. "Hasten on your way, my friend."

The creature emitted a trill, before spreading its wings, and taking off into the air. It flew for a short distance, then disappeared soundlessly into the sky.

Cassandra returned to her desk, retrieving a crystalline marble with a smoky interior. She held it in her hand, closing her eyes for a moment to concentrate on the glass ball. The light weight grew, so that it was now with the larger and rounder form of a crystal ball.

She sat down, watching what the trusted magical object displayed. She had no control of the situation at the moment… The best she could do was to anticipate what could happen next, and be there to face it. It was anyone's guess where they could end up in this dimension if everything went well, and she would have to take this chance to find them.

The misty depths of the crystal ball cleared to show a large room of doors, with a single, cloaked figure standing in the middle. An iron staff was gripped firmly in his hand, seemingly harmless. He was alert, watching out for any changes in the place. His eyes were glowing a familiar electric blue, and he stood tall, senses sharpened to help him retain control of the situation. No mistake could be made.

Along the walls were doors, each opening into a different world. Some were bright, blessed with holy light, and others were dark and threatening, warning of the dangers ahead. There were others with greenery, and some with glints of advanced technology. Metal gates flanked each door, every one bearing the same design.

All was quiet for a few moments, until one of the doorways shimmered, and a small group of people appeared in front of it, together with two cats. They seemed to be unconscious.

The woman watched with bated breath as the cloaked figure approached them. They were vulnerable to any form of attack now, should someone decide to spring one on them. She was in no position to help – it was impossible for her to access the place before the gates opened, and there was no time for her to go now – she had to find them once they descended.

Melden raised his staff, causing the group to be lifted into the air. He turned, scanning the place once again to make sure that everything was going smoothly, before walking briskly to another doorway, and holding the suspended group in front of the opened gates. The familiar picture of the world beyond beckoned, and it shimmered too, before the humans and cats were gone.

* * *

It crouched at the doorway, waiting for the cloaked man to turn away, then charged through, at a speed that no ordinary being could reach. The keeper whipped around and held his staff up to block an attack the creature sent him. It felt a force surrounding itself, but beat its wings and threw the power back at the man, who stood his ground.

Its red eyes locked with the electric blue pair for a mere second, then the raven continued forward, towards a gate, barely dodging a beam of lightning the keeper directed at it, before it beat its wings again and flew at it. There was no way the man could beat it. It had been charged with magic, and Kleston did not give it those powers for nothing.

A piercing pain on its right leg told it that the keeper had struck on target, but it was too late for the man to stop the creature from entering the dimension.

The raven passed the shimmering doorway, just as it felt the cloaked man fire another pulse at it, only to miss by a hair's breadth. A light curse was heard.

* * *

Her heart stopped for a moment when she saw the black bird exiting the gate. It was not supposed to be there… The creature must have slipped through Melden's defense somehow… Regardless of how it came to be in this dimension, it was from the dark side, and it would never do to allow the bird to catch sight of the human group.

Muttering a strong invisibility spell, she watched the crystal ball as the group was enclosed by the charm, which would enable only her to see them for a certain time. That would deflect any unwanted attention, especially from the raven. The seven people were descending to the ground, and she hoped that the creature had not seen them yet.

Not many people in his land had magical powers. She was one of the rare few, as were her mother's side of the family. Her job now was to serve the king Nicholas Geraint, and try to unlock the Auri stone. If she succeeded, she would be able to gain the favour of the King and Queen, and… The face of her close friend, also the crown prince, Christopher-Anthony, rose in her mind. And secure her position in the castle… Right.

The group of seven people landed on the ground, and she studied them yet again, before checking the surroundings to ascertain their location. A wave of confidence surged in her heart when she realised that it was near the place where her lodge was. The building was hers, but she lived in the castle most of the time, and she just had it for an alternate place to stay.

Cassandra walked over to her pinewood-framed mirror, passing her hand over the ruby at the base of the wood, so that the glass shimmered and melted to another image – that of the newly-arrived group of people.

Now to wait until they came to…

* * *

It took a while before his vision cleared, and he could see more clearly. The first thing his golden orbs met with was the pink-haired woman lying beside him, her eyelids twitching slightly before she opened her eyes too. They looked at each other, each wearing the same clothes they had on before the transformation. Both of them were still alive, lying on some grass… He didn't know what had happened, but what mattered most to him at that moment was that they'd both made it, and they were still together…

Ray pulled her closer to him, meeting her soft lips with his to prove that this was real, and to tell her how glad he was that she was with him. They were humans once again… He felt her kiss him back, threading her fingers through his hair to hold him there. It seemed to take forever for them to change back, and they could now be free from their restrictions of their feline forms… He'd wanted so much to feel her skin against his again…

"Argh! Where in the world are we?"

The shout from Tyson caused them to break apart sharply and pull themselves up. Curious gazes were averted from them. The rest of the Bladebreakers, as well as Emily, were already sitting up and looking around. Bewilderment was plastered on most of their faces, and it wasn't difficult to see why.

They were in a clearing of some sort, with a forest of trees surrounding them, and in the distance, three of four sides were mountains. The last was an open space. There were no buildings in sight, just trees and plants. The air was surprisingly fresh, and the position of the sun high in the sky told them that it was almost noon in this place.

How did they even manage to get there? The last things he saw was everyone being lifted in the air, and the room turning dark. All they did was black out, and then they were located in a whole new different place. This couldn't have been a dream… Was this connected to the strange white glow, and the bottomless pool he saved Mariah from two years back? But how could they get answers? It didn't seem as though there was anyone around to help them…

"Uh… Maybe we aren't even on Earth, Tyson," Emily pointed out, looking weirdly at something. They followed her gaze, some gasping when they saw what she was concerned about.

A yellow, squirrel-like animal was chewing on a blue fruit held tightly in its paws. Its bright indigo eyes, however, were fixed on them. The strangest parts about it were the furry wings folded behind its back, ready for it to take flight should it come across danger.

"Emily, I think you're right," Mariah told her, edging closer to Ray. He slipped his hand into hers reassuringly, although he wasn't even sure himself. She grinned at him, and he could not help but smile back.

"How do we go home?" Kenny asked, clutching his laptop nervously. It had miraculously survived whatever they'd been through, and he opened it up, waiting for the program to be ready. "I'll do a scan of this place, and see what I can find."

The rest of them nodded. How exactly did they get there, and how could they get back home?

"I'll let Dranzer look at this place from above," Kai volunteered, disliking the feeling of cluelessness as to where they were. Besides, it would help greatly, and they still had to find a way home.

"Hey, that's a great idea, Kai!" Max cheered, grinning. However, before they could do anything else, the musical lilt of a woman's voice was heard.

"Greetings, and welcome to our dimension. I believe we speak the same tongue."

The seven people whipped around and got to their feet, staring at a young auburn-haired woman standing behind them. She looked rather unreal, and slightly fuzzy around the edges.

She was of their height, and rather slender. Wavy, auburn, back-length hair cascaded behind her shoulders, with the exception of two locks of reddish-brown hair running down the sides of her face and down her front. Deep, azure eyes, a sharp nose and full lips that curved up slightly characterised her face, and her pale complexion accentuated the colour of her hair.

A white, long-sleeved and ankle-length dress made up most of her outfit. Some of the cloth gathered around her neck in graceful folds, so that it seemed more like the design of the article, rather than an excess of her clothing yet to be filled up. Two pieces of white cloth hung down from beneath her sleeves, forming an enclosed extension of her sleeves, with pointed tips at the bottom. The width of the dress slowly widened from the waist down to allow her to move more quickly, so that the cloth was also folded at the base of her dress. A silver chain rounded her waist as a belt, with one end of the chain hanging down from the loop, a rounded colourless crystal molded to it. Seamless white shoes completed her outfit, and a whitish aura surrounded her, although it was barely visible.

Immediately, a barrage of questions was fired at her.

"Who are you?"

"Where are we?"

"How'd we get here?"

"How do we go back?"

"Do you want something from us? If it's our bit beasts, the answer's a 'no.'"

To their surprise, she smiled calmly, lowering herself to sit cross-legged on the ground. "Sit. This will take a while."

They continued to stand, somewhat uncertainly, and Tyson looked incredulously at her. "Sit? Do you take us for idiots? So we let our guard down, and the next thing we know is that you've attacked us or captured us?"

She shook her head placidly, her azure eyes boring into his. "I swear that I will not attack you. My duty here is to guide you around this place, and you are of importance to our esteemed King and Queen. I have no inclination to harm you – only to protect you."

They seemed to regard her wearily, before settling down in front of her. Although she could see their individual faces, there was little difficulty in deducing the relationships between them, from the way they held themselves in front of her.

"Firstly, I am Cassandra Delianee Feliz, one of the King's officials in the High Court. Call me Cassandra. I do know all your names –" she said as their eyes widened, "as I have been put in charge of handling this."

To her extreme left was Kai Hiwatari, the slate-haired man who was seated further apart from the rest of the group, but still possessed an aura of leadership. It was undeniable that he had distanced himself from the rest of the group, but there was the underlying truth that he would do his best to save them from danger. He had the guardian spirit of the red phoenix Dranzer with him.

"Secondly, you are in the Infinite Lands, which is in a dimension different from yours. The locals call it Eternia. The time here travels faster than it does in your dimension, so you needn't worry about the inconveniences the time difference causes.

"We are ruled by the King Nicholas Geraint and the Queen Shiila, who is a princess from the dimension of Eliasora. The people are peace-loving, and there are few who have intentions of harming others – this you can be assured of. Most of the locals here do not have special powers, but I belong to the few who do," she continued, dispelling the 'why should I listen to you' look on Kai's face by casting a freezing spell on him for a few seconds.

"The creatures here may not be the same as those where you come from, and I will thus caution you that not every one of them will be harmless. Whenever possible, distance yourselves from them."

To her front were four people – Tyson Kinomiya, the most immature one, with the guardian spirit of the blue dragon Dragoon; Kenny (whose surname she could not rightly remember), who could be the most familiar with the advanced object he brought along with him, in which his guardian spirit Dizzara was trapped; Max Mizuhara, seemingly serious, although he had a bright and pure heart, and his guardian spirit was the purple tortoise Draciel; Emily Watson, who was spunky and intelligent, and held the guardian spirit of the alligator Trygator. Then there was the telltale gesture of the clasped hands of Max and Emily… She fathomed it was a budding romance, but at least they were better off than her…

"Thirdly, you came here through the interdimensional gates when they opened a short time ago. Melden, the gatekeeper, guided you here. The –"

"Why didn't Melden just let us go back to where we belong?" Ray cut in, curious.

"Once a being passes through a set of gates, he, she or it will not be able to re-enter the dimension, as the being will be coated by the magic of the gate, which will be repelled by the gate itself once it is on another body. I shall touch more on that later."

The raven-haired man, Raymond Kon, was on her right, his arm wrapped protectively around the waist of the pink-haired woman, Mariah Yin. He had the guardian spirit of the white tiger Driger, while she had the guardian of the mountain cat Galux. It was obvious that they were very much in love, and they shared a strong bond, which had already been proven by the fact that they were the special ones who had been chosen to help unlock the Auri stone. She had seen them in feline form before, and it was unmistakable that they were the reincarnations of the Lord Rei ad the Lady Mao… It was uncanny that their present names were so similar to the ones they used to have… Even their appearances were almost the same.

"Fourthly, there are only three known ways for you to return to your homeland. The first is when the interdimensional gates next open, which happens under very rare circumstances, the second is through the whirlpools in the Northern Seas, which we have yet to ascertain where each leads to, and the third is when we are able to call upon a vast amount of magic. However, the only way to do this is through the aid of the guardian spirit Talora, who is trapped in the Auri stone at the moment, which is why you were called upon to help us free it."

"Why us?" Kenny asked immediately, voicing the mystification of the entire group.

"Actually, the people we need most here are Ray and Mariah, as they possess qualities here that do not surface where you are from. Also, you were with them when the gates opened, and so you should serve to protect them in the face of danger. In a way, they do have the key to your way home. I will arrive tomorrow and explain the rest then."

It was amazing how they had both been reborn. Everybody thought otherwise – there was so much dark energy involved. Lord Rei and Lady Mao had been King Geraint's most loyal advisors, but they had died when Kleston, the King's distant cousin, attacked them. It was a long story, and she did not want to bring it up just then – these people could be tired from the dimension transfer.

"Before I take my leave –"

"You mean you're going to leave us here alone? We don't even know this place!" Tyson exclaimed anxiously. What if monsters descended upon them when the sun set? They didn't know what lay deep in the forest...

Cassandra blinked. "This is but a mere image of me. I have yet to reach you, but I should be able to meet with you by tomorrow morning.

"You are in the Toral Cove. To the west, where no mountains can be seen, is the Eastern Sea. To the north, south and west are dormant volcanoes, and the castle of the King and Queen lies far beyond the north-west of this place."

They turned to look as she talked, nodding when they absorbed the information. She knew that it was hard on them, but there was no other alternative. She did not want to leave them without any knowledge of this land. Ignorance could lead to accidents, and they could not allow for any mistakes.

"To the west of this clearing is a small, empty cottage, and you can put up there for the night. There is food in the kitchen, and fresh clothes will be in the cupboards. If there is an item you need, simply call for it. Your desired article should be able to appear in the cupboards.

"There is a stream and a lake near the cottage if you want to go for a swim. The waters should be relatively safe and shallow at the edges of the lake. Also, do not stray too far, as I have placed an energy shield here, and it serves only to protect you from harm. Should you be attacked, call upon your guardian spirits for help."

They nodded uncertainly. Should they trust her? She'd told them a lot, but how could they know if she wasn't really bad after all? Could this be a trap? But there was no other way to tell, except to see how things went after a while, and then judge.

"We shall meet tomorrow, then." Cassandra smiled and bowed slightly, then her image dissolved into the air.

* * *

She sighed and got off from the floor. There was nothing else she could do now, except to ride out and meet up with them. Hopefully, her protective shield would be strong enough to protect them from any harm, and nothing bad would happen to those people. They had been fighting against evil in their own dimension, and she heard that they'd stopped someone from taking over the world there. Her main concern now was that she could get to them in time, and that they didn't fall under the spell of Kleston.

The flutter of wings caught her ears, and she turned towards the window. The same Whisse was back again with another message. She took another handful of food and walked towards it. Once she had the scroll, she flattened it, squinting slightly to see the almost illegible handwriting.

_Forgive me. A black bird slipped into your dimension. It possessed an incredible amount of magic. I can only say that it was beyond my power to stop it. My deep apologies for causing you trouble – Melden._

She took a twig and replied to his words, before handing the scroll back to the animal, which took off again.

_Do not blame yourself. If it was meant to happen, nothing could have stopped it. I shall try to remedy the situation, although it is probable that some damage has already been done – Cassandra._

The woman crossed the room and lifted her crystal ball off its table with both hands, applying a slight pressure on the smooth, glassy surface, until the sphere shrank into the palm of her hand. There was no telling when she would be back, although she had to lead the group here sometime or other, as was the King's request when he put her in charge of this.

Her father, the court advisor who had taken over the place of Lord Rei when he passed on, had been especially proud of her. They were all counting on her, although King Nicholas told her that he would grant her aid when she needed it. Still, she would much rather carry it out on her own, and prove herself worthy…

She walked over to the door, pulling it open. There was little else she had to do here.

An arm was sharply pulled back, and she came face to face with the deep violet eyes and unruly chocolate hair of a man. Cassandra took a step back. Crown prince Christopher-Anthony Geraint. Had he come to see her? Her heart warmed, not leaving her to make the decision of ending this encounter off quickly.

He was dressed simply in a navy-blue, long-sleeved shirt with a short collar, and dark brown pants, with sable boots on his feet. The only things that told him apart from other people in the castle were the royal ring on his right thumb, and the sheathed heavy sword on his belt that had been forged for him. She took another moment off to look at him.

He was half a head taller than her, and sandy strands of hair streaked through the deep brown majority, causing him to have a slight devilish appearance… His mouth was wide in a smile – he was planning to surprise her. The man was well-built, and he wasn't too muscular, which suited her taste just fine.

"Prince Geraint." She curtsied slightly, then looked up at him. She'd have called him by his pet name, if it weren't for the solemnity of the matter. "The reincarnates of Lord Rei and Lady Mao have arrived at the Toral Cove. I have to ride out and meet them. Could you pass the information to the King and Queen?"

His eyes widened slightly, and he caught her hand in a gesture of well-wishing. "I will… Cassie. May the best of luck be with you… I'll see you again?"

Her cheeks chose this time to flush, although the prince did not seem to mind. "I can't thank you enough… I will return, but the time of my arrival is vague. I'll… see you again, Tony."

She let their gazes lock for a little longer than necessary, as well as their hands to make contact, before she pulled away. He was a crown-prince – his parents would never approve of this. She backed away and smiled back at him, before heading away through the many turns, corridors and stairways of the castle.

A snowy horse was waiting for her in the palace grounds. It had two feathery wings, which were spread, ready to take flight. She pawed at the ground and whinnied at the woman in impatience and anticipation.

Cassandra hurried towards the animal, quickly mounting and nudging her flanks with her feet. "Let's go, Eloea."

The horse neighed and set off at a canter, the great wings beating in the air. They began to fly, gaining altitude with each beat of the white wings. Winds blew at them, causing her hair to be blown away from her face.

A pair of violet eyes was fixed on the airborne pair, the expressive depths swirling with a mixture of sadness and worry.

* * *

Well… How do you people like this chapter? Sorry for being pretty boring… I had to explain the change in circumstances. If you think I described Cassandra too badly, and you couldn't picture what she looks like, the link to her picture (on Deviant Art) is in my profile. :)

And please REVIEW! I want to know who I'm writing this for… (Don't forget to review the lemon either… the link is in my profile too.)


	6. The Infinite Lands Part Two

Hello everybody! I'm back! I know it's been long since I've updated, but I've been really, really busy at school... Hope you can understand.

Anyway, half of this chapter is filled with Ray/Mariah moments, and it contains a pretty strong Ray/Mariah lime, so be forewarned. :)

If you like the ReiMao in this chapter, remember to review afterwards! I'll be really grateful!

**Bloody Mary – **I'm really sorry for being boring in the last chapter... I really can't write Action/Adventure, and anyway, that chapter was more for explanations... ;) Hope you like this chapter.

**disappearing vapour –** I'm glad you like both Instincts and Peace!

**Galux Kitty –** Yes! They're back to their normal forms:) ((is happy)) ... I think the plot of this fic is pretty lame...

**Paris Super Girls –** I'm happy that they've reverted back to their old forms too! And I'm glad you like the OC/OC:)

**ray-is-sexy – **I'm happy to review your fic:) Yes, we all look forward to limes and lemons.

**Ashanti –** Hello! Thanks for the review, and for thinking that about my fics!

**Flareod –** Fantasy is nice... I'm glad that they're human again too!

**Jadis Fazer –** :) Thanks for the review! I'm glad you think so!

**Galux –** :) ((is happy that you like the chapter))

Disclaimer: I do not own Beyblade (or Ray and Mariah wouldn't be doing so little... things). **The song You Make Me Wanna (by Blue) used to be in this fic, but due to FFN's stupid rules, the song has been taken off. If you want a copy of the original songfic, feel free to email me:) **Now... Carry on with the fic!

**Feline Instincts  
By Aquarius Galuxy  
Chapter 6: The Infinite Lands (Part Two)**

Silence reigned in the clearing, until Ray found his voice again. They were all looking at one another, wondering what to make of all that had happened. And then there was the thing about him and Mariah being special…

"So… Should we trust her? There doesn't seem to be anyone else we know here."

The woman beside him nodded. "We can, but all of us have to keep an eye out for anything that doesn't seem to be right. I have this feeling that we should believe in her."

There was a general murmur of agreement among the rest of them, and Max stood up, dusting himself off. "Well, we can't be sitting here all day, can we? I vote we find that house Cassandra was talking about. After all, we need a place to rest."

They nodded and got up too, heading west into the forest. There were many trees, but not overly crowded, so that it seemed to welcome them in. A few strange-sounding chirps greeted them along the way, although no animals could be seen.

After a walk lasting around five minutes, the trees opened out into another clearing, this one being much larger than the one they were in previously. To the left, hidden by some trees, was a small stream, and beyond the clearing was a wide lake, which was masked more heavily than the stream which fed it. However, the glitter on the surface of the water could still be seen through the gaps of the trees, and it looked inviting.

A cottage stood in the middle of the clearing, quaintly built. It had a tiled roof, sloping down on both sides, and a chimney peeked from the back of the house. A wooden door and two small glass windows completed the front of the house, and it could be expected that everything else inside would be carefully made too.

The door was unlocked, and they filed in slowly, eyes wide at the wooden floors and walls, as well as the cozily decorated rooms. There was not a sign of dust anywhere, almost as if there were a housekeeper here, or that the house had somehow cleaned itself magically.

Awed remarks were made, and they spread out throughout the cottage to explore it.

"Hey!" Tyson exclaimed. "There're five bedrooms, and there're seven of us!"

There was a pregnant pause, before Ray grinned at his fiancée. "I'll share one with Mari."

Kenny walked back to the living room, where the other six people had gathered. His expression was one with a mixture of incredulousness and shock. He spoke weakly, "I've just checked… They're all single beds."

"We'll… manage…" Ray replied, turning back to Mariah, squeezing her hand. She could not help but feel her heart leap at the devious glint in his eyes. The prospect of being snuggled warmly up with him was irresistible. If only time passed faster…

The brown-haired man blinked awkwardly, the thought of an unmarried couple sharing a _single_ bed not being digestible to him. However, it was their choice, and he had to respect that. "If you say so…"

The weird looks at the engaged pair turned to those of thoughtful ones when Emily reminded them that they were still short of a room. Silence ensued again as each person wondered whether he or she should give up the room that he or she 'rightfully' had.

"I'll sleep on the couch," Kai said at last, determinedly, so that there was nothing else for the rest of them to do but nod. Seeing that there was nothing else he could do here… The slate-haired man headed for the door, pausing to say something. "I'll go outside and have a look around."

The door was opened and shut, and Kai disappeared outside. It was quiet again, when a rumble came in the direction of Tyson's stomach. The navy-haired man grinned sheepishly.

"Hey, it's nearly lunchtime back home!" he said as an excuse, as the remaining people sighed in defeat. "Ray, as a good friend of mine, could you cook me something? Please?"

Ray looked at the feline woman next to him. She squeezed his hand in reassurance and tiptoed to whisper in his ear, "I'll wait for you in our room… I feel like going for a swim."

"Sure," he murmured in reply, smiling at her, and watching her retreat into the bedroom furthest away, before following Tyson into the kitchen.

"So, Ray, how are things going between you and Mariah?" Tyson asked, smirking in a somewhat evil fashion.

The Chinese man opened the pantry door and scanned the food inside, taking some items out. Now wasn't the time to be thinking about her… The way she smiled, the way she behaved, what they were going to do later on… "We're doing fine, and being happily engaged."

The Japanese man narrowed his eyes, observing his friend. "So… why'd you volunteer to share the bed with her? I mean, both of you are still not married…"

"Tyson, we know what we're doing –"

"You're going to sleep with her?" A sly smile highlighted the question.

Ray coloured slightly, turning away. Why did people keep questioning them about this? He wasn't embarrassed about it… It was just that the matter was a little too awkward to be spoken about in public…

"Actually, that's part of the reason why we were turned into cats… It was a criteria of the prophecy, only that we didn't know it at that time… The bottom line is that we really do love each other, and we don't regret anything that happened."

Tyson blinked, another smirk growing on his face as it dawned on him. He thumped Ray on the back. "Way to go, Ray!"

"Uh… We'd prefer it if you kept it under wraps, Tyson," the Chinese man muttered uncomfortably.

There was a thoughtful look on his face, before he grinned. "My lips are sealed."

* * *

Ray walked out of the kitchen, wondering if Mariah had waited long. He hadn't meant to keep her waiting… He knew that she wouldn't be angry, but it made him feel guilty for keeping her in suspense.

There was only Kenny in the living room, running another program on his laptop. Ray paused, facing the bespectacled man to ask about the remaining people in their group.

"Kenny, do you know where Max and Emily are? They were here before I went in…"

The brown-haired man looked up, a little dazed. "They mentioned something about walking to the stream…"

"Thanks." He headed to the last room, knocking softly on the door before opening it.

Mariah was dressed in a white, fluffy bathrobe, holding another in her hands. She stepped away from the wooden closet and smiled at him. His heart melted, and he grinned back at her, walking closer. A playful grin crept up her face as she handed him a pair of swimming trunks and the bathrobe. "Get dressed."

He leaned in and pressed a kiss to her lips, taking the bundle from her. "Have you been waiting long?"

"No… I was thinking – what did Cassandra mean when she said that we have 'qualities' that don't surface back home? And why were we turned into cats? Surely there has to be something behind the prophecy…"

Ray pulled her into a hug, stroking the back of her head. "I don't know, Mari… But we'll ask Cassandra when we see her again, okay?"

She nodded, then drew away from him, letting her fingers trail down his arms. His gaze rested on her, and he began to undress, knowing that her eyes were on him, and that she was enjoying this as much as he was.

It seemed like ages since she last saw him like that… She looked him up and down, unable to tear her eyes away… not that she wanted to. His handsome face, his beautiful golden eyes, his long black hair, his strong arms, his muscled torso, his toned legs, his… A touch of regret bit at her heart when he pulled on his swimming trunks.

Ray put the bathrobe on, then slipped an arm around her waist, murmuring in her ear. "Let's go."

She nodded and pressed closer to him, delighting in the feel of the robed body beside hers. He'd like how she dressed herself up… She could feel it in her being. After all, he needed a treat too… They'd been felines for far too long, in her opinion. Mariah anticipated the time when they returned from the lake… Nothing could really happen at the lake itself – it was too open and public. But they could still have fun in the water…

The glittering surface of the lake was what they first saw when they neared it, followed by the shallow, crystalline waters. It seemed to beckon towards them, inviting them in.

Ray steered them towards a spot fairly far away from the direction of the cottage, where a few low bushes were. Mariah pulled away from him, taking a couple of steps backwards, before undoing the loose knot on her bathrobe and pulling the white cloth off. Tossing the bathrobe onto a bush, she faced him again, grinning coyly as he shed his bathrobe, throwing it on top of hers.

His golden eyes were fixed on her body, pupils dilating slightly when he realised that she was wearing a slinky two-piece. He missed looking upon her half-naked body… The carnal desire for her arose again… Was coming here a good idea?

Mariah slipped into the water, feeling her feet land on the sandy lakebed. Her eyes danced as she waited for him to enter. Ray grinned and followed her in, lowering himself into the water. It was slightly higher than chest-deep for her, but she didn't seem to mind. The woman stepped closer to him and ran a hand lightly down his chest, causing his heart to race. She leaned in and brushed her lips across his, then pulled back.

"Ray, would you like to carry me around the lake?" she asked quietly, a smile tugging on the corners of her lips.

"I don't see why not…" He turned and bent his knees slightly, so that he faced away from her, allowing her to climb on. Mariah tiptoed and leaned against him, wrapping her arms around his neck, before lifting and curling her legs against his waist. A purr escaped her throat when he reached up to support her rear. He smiled and turned his head to look at her. "You're ready?"

"Yeah," she murmured, pressing herself closer to him. Ray smiled, taking slow steps along the bank of the lake. It _was_ enjoyable walking around that lake with her clinging onto him, and her water-supported weight on his back. However, it was difficult for him to keep calm, with how she kept rubbing her body against his, and how she nuzzled his neck…

The man felt his heart accelerate when she rubbed her chest against his back. He could feel her bringing her head closer to his… She started to nibble softly on his neck, causing him to breathe more deeply… She was arousing him…

"Mari… Can I put you down?"

She pulled slightly away from him, letting one hand slide down his arm. "Okay."

He lowered her onto the lakebed, then turned around to look at her. There was a playful smile on her face. Ray reached over to wrap his arms around her waist and pulled her close, as his heart flooded with love for her once again. He gazed into her eyes for a second, before succumbing to the strong urge…

She gasped slightly when he bent down to kiss her hard, and she returned it. He felt her hands creep under his arms and around his waist, holding him to her. He'd yearned to do this for so long… His hands moved up to her shoulder blades, then her head to cup her cheeks. She was toying with the hem of his swimming trunks…

He let his hands slide down to her chest, grinning against her lips when she trembled. His fingers slipped under her bra top, moving between her skin and the cloth to climb the full curves of her breasts. A pleasured purr escaped her throat as he caressed her, passing his fingertips over her nipples. She pressed herself against him, almost pleading for more. He withdrew a hand, much to her displeasure, reaching behind to undo the bow she'd tied to secure the top in place. She raised her arms to wrap them around his neck so that it was easier for him to touch her.

In mere seconds, the garment was drifting loosely around her body, and she pulled away from him, grinning. "Miss me?"

"Yes…" He looked deep into her eyes, delighted at her arousal and passion. The man ran his thumbs along the bottom edges of her uncovered breasts, watching as her pupils dilated further. He wanted her again… He hadn't held her human form in his arms for such a long time… She stepped closer to him, so that her skin brushed against his. The unrestrained peaks of her breasts pressed lightly against his chest…

If it weren't for the fact that there were other people around, he'd already have made love to her… It was obvious that she wanted it too…

The crunch of footsteps on grass alerted them to the arrival of at least one person. Eyes widened, he pulled the woman to himself, leading her behind the shelter of an overhanging escarpment. They grinned sheepishly at each other, and Ray reached behind to tie her bra top back into place, finishing it off by running a finger down her spine. She shivered and brushed her lips against his.

"Hey, Max, do you think we should be heading back now?" Emily's voice floated through the air to their ears. "It's almost mid-afternoon here."

There was a pause, before Max replied, "Yeah, you're right, Emily. Come, let's go back."

The sounds of their footsteps grew more distant after a while, and Ray raised his hand to brush a few strands of her hair away from her face, gazing softly at her. "Want to go back too?"

"Sure." She grinned, taking hold of his other hand. "It should be near lunch or dinner now, and there's no one else to cook."

"Okay then."

They walked further up, where the bank of the lake was less towering, before he lifted himself out of the water, then offering her a hand to help her out.

* * *

The night was relatively quiet, from where they were, at the little space under a leafy tree. Starlight shone down from the sky, doing little to illuminate the clearing, and the little cottage that stood within it. A sea of clouds was at the side of the clearing, not yet threatening to rain.

Dinner had already been settled, and it was close to midnight. The rest of the seven people had turned in for an early night, so that there wasn't any sign of light streaming from the window. They could rest peacefully behind the protective shield, and they were grateful for it. All seven of them had discussed their situation so far, forming some harmless theories which could be tested along the way.

But for now, that matter was laid to rest, and he wanted to spend the rest of the night thinking only about the woman leaning against him at that moment.

Ray tightened his hold on Mariah, who had laid her head against his shoulder. She looked up at him in curiosity, and he smiled reassuringly at her. She was snuggled against him, sharing his heat as the cold night air descended upon the ground. It was the only other time they could be alone together, apart from the time they'd spent in the lake.

He leaned close to her, burying his face in her hair. He missed running his hand through her silken locks… Somehow, they ways to pleasure her were very much reduced when they changed into felines, and he felt guilty for not being able to please her as well as he could when he was a human. He was so glad when they turned back… It just made him treasure the feminine form beside him more… It was wonderful enough sitting with her like that, where there was no necessity to speak.

She placed a hand on his chest, slowly running it across to take in his shape. She'd wanted to feel his human form against hers, on hers… Being a feline had its bonuses, but she'd come to realise that humans were more easily aroused. However, she still loved him just as much… Everything about him appealed to her. She raised her hand to touch his lips, and her breath caught in her throat when he lifted her up and placed her on his lap, so that she faced him.

Her face was shadowed from any light, so that he couldn't see her playful grin. Mariah leaned forward to kiss him passionately, purring and threading her fingers through his hair when he returned it. He encircled her waist with his arms, smiling when she entered his mouth without warning. Her tongue toyed with his, re-exploring his mouth. This was something they couldn't exactly do as cats, and she was making the most of it now.

There was nothing else he could do except think about her, and how her body was molded so invitingly against his...

The distant sound of beating wings were ignored by them, until it grew louder, which was when they realised that something was heading for them. The couple broke apart, looking up at whatever was flying in the air.

Clouds finally moved away from the full moon, surprising them with its presence. Everything was suddenly brighter, and they saw a white horse galloping towards the ground, its huge wings beating strongly at its sides. Cassandra was riding on it, without any rein or saddle. She was dressed in the same clothing as when they last saw her. A smile touched her lips when she saw them.

Black hooves came into contact with the ground, thudding on the grass at high speed. Horse and rider came to a stop before them, and they watched as the woman dismounted, walking to the front of the horse, which folded its wings at its sides. She held the white, furred head, looking deep into the large brown eyes.

"That will be all for today, Eloea. I will call for you again tomorrow. Go and rest for now."

The horse nodded, backing away from her once her hands fell from its face. Cassandra watched as it trotted off, then walked over the two people sitting under the tree. By now, Mariah had slipped to one side of her fiancé, and they were watching her.

She drew close to, and finally stopped in front of them, bowing slightly. "We meet again."

They blinked in surprise. She looked more realistic than in the afternoon, and the white glow was still around her.

"You said you were arriving tomorrow," Ray said in question. Could she really be trusted?

She nodded. "I did, but nothing happened along the way, and the winds are blowing in this direction. I did not expect this myself."

The auburn-haired woman observed them as they looked at each other, then back at her. "Is there anything you wish to know?"

"Yes," Mariah replied, watching as the woman sat under another tree two metres away. "You said earlier that Ray and I have special 'qualities' in this dimension. What do you mean?"

"A hundred years ago, there existed an animosity for the King Geraint, harboured by the King's distant cousin himself – Kleston. Kleston believed that he should be the king of Eternia, as he was born with magical powers, while King Geraint wasn't. Thus a rift grew between these two men, and Kleston tried many ways to get back at the King, but was generally unsuccessful, as there is a strong defence force in Eternia.

"On the other side of the story, a strange stone was brought to the King, and it was said to have something trapped within it. This stone was named the Auri stone. King Geraint trusted his two closest advisors, Lord Rei and Lady Mao, to unlock its secret, as he knew of their magical powers. The Lord and Lady were glad to help, and they tried, unsuccessfully, to discover what lay within.

"One day, they brought it to the Emerald Court in the castle, where magic is said to be the strongest.

"Kleston decided to attack on that very day, and he had grown much stronger so that Lord Rei and Lady Mao had to use all their powers to defend the stone and the castle against him. The royal guardian spirit, Talora, came to help, but all the energy involved banished Kleston to a distant, unknown place, trapped Talora in the Auri stone and killed the Lord and Lady."

There was a short pause, before Cassandra continued. "Some parts of the Auri stone were dispersed on his land, and we believe that they have to be retrieved before anything else can be done to unlock the stone. And to find those pieces, we need the souls of the Lord and Lady to find and retrieve them."

"So... you mean that we're the reincarnations of the Lord and Lady?" Ray asked, finding Mariah's hand and squeezing it slightly.

"Yes." The azure-eyed woman answered steadily. "I'm afraid that you don't really have much choice. Without Talora, you cannot return."

They could do nothing but accept what she said. Mariah glanced at Ray, then back at Cassandra. "Was that why we were changed into cats?"

Cassandra nodded. "The Lord and Lady were previously known for morphing into cats themselves, and it appears that you have acquired that ability. I don't think you know this – both or you are able to return to your feline forms when you want to, and you can use this to aid you in case you run into danger. However, it may take some practice before you can do so flawlessly."

They nodded numbly, and Mariah remembered something. "What about that strange white glow that enveloped us back home?"

"I was trying to make sure that you were safe... We couldn't afford to let you get hurt even before you arrived. I _am_ sorry to have watched you at some point or other... I was just worried that Kleston found out and attempted to take the stone for himself. And before I forget... This is an invisibility charm. Your desire to hide anybody will call upon its powers."

Cassandra drew a chain from her dress and handed it to Ray.

He looked at it. It was a thin, silvery chain, with silver tendrils curling around a black pearl as a pendant. The man looked back at her, and she gave him a well-meaning smile, nodding towards it. "Thanks..."

Ray took the chain and secured it around Mariah's neck, murmuring, "If there's any danger, save yourself first... I don't want to lose you..."

They shared a loving gaze, before Cassandra spoke again. "The Lord and Lady cared a lot for each other too... Just thought you might like to know that."

"You knew them?" Mariah asked.

"Yes – my father worked alongside them sometimes... The people here age very slowly."

Thunder rumbled in the distance, and the moon was rapidly being shielded by dark clouds again. A few drops of rain fell.

"Listen – it's going to storm heavily. You had best return to the cottage," Cassandra told them.

"What about you?" They couldn't just leave her alone in the rain...

"I'll be fine. Just go on without me," she replied, waving them away. They took a last look at her, before the clouds swallowed the moon, and rain started to pelt down. The two people sprinted back to the small building, twisting the doorknob open and nearly stumbling into the living room.

Kai opened his eyes from his place on the couch that was facing the door, ready to spring into action, should there be an attack on them. Ray and Mariah grinned sheepishly at him, and he narrowed his eyes, turning away to sleep.

The raven-haired man grabbed his fiancée's hand, his eyes dancing when she turned to look at him. Raindrops pattered on the windows and the roof, creating an irregular, yet constant beat at the same time.

Without a word, they headed for their room, Ray opening the door for her to enter first, then shutting it behind him. He turned to face her. Their gazes locked for what seemed to be forever, as they merely stood and wondered at the other's presence.

They were finally back in their human forms, with the potential of doing many things ahead of them. It had been long since they had last done this, and anticipation, as well as strong desire, was building up in their hearts. The events of the afternoon had not been forgotten, and that only added to the need of being truly bonded again.

Ray released her hand, circling her waist to pull her close to him. She gave a small, almost inaudible gasp before their lips met in a deep kiss. They wanted each other... He could feel her warm, supple body against his... She was pressing herself against him, so that each could feel the other... Her lips were working against his, hungry for more of him... He entered her mouth, sliding his tongue over hers, under hers... She teased him back.

Her hand fell from his chest to his side, finding the hem of his shirt and tugging on it. He took a step forward, in the direction of the bed, so that she had to move backwards, or she would risk losing her balance. Breaking away from her, he peeled his shirt off his torso. His heart filled with warmth when she looked upon him and smiled, brushing her chest against his. He shivered and kissed her again, letting his hands slide to the edge of her denim pants. Ray took another step forward, causing her to retreat and hug him closer to herself.

She reached down to the hem of _his_ pants, reaching in and deftly untying the knot he'd previously tied. His form trembled a little, and she pushed the article of clothing down, breaking away from him to grin triumphantly. He was still on the hook above the zip of her pants... She drew back temptingly, making him follow her back, and moving even nearer to her.

The man fingered her zip, before pulling it down. He didn't seem to be affected by her grin, instead smiling back at her. The next thing she felt was his hand sliding down to her crotch, remaining there for a second, before he withdrew it. She shivered violently. Her pupils were already large from the lack of light, and they dilated further with his touch.

She stepped out of her pants too, before he tipped her chin up to capture her lips again. His lips were soft and warm against hers... He was trailing kisses down her jaw... She felt him reach down to unbutton her sleeveless blouse, drawing her breath sharply when his hand nudged against her breast. She loved it when he touched her... Mariah pulled him backwards, nearer still to the bed.

A tremble shook her form as she anticipated the time when he reached the last of the buttons. Mariah rested her hands at the small of his back, trailing small circles on his skin. The corners of her lips twitched up when he started to push her shirt down, and she pulled her hands away, so that the shirt fell to the floor. He tugged softly on her lips, before breaking away and looking her over, then returning to her eyes. He flashed a playful smile at her, so that his fangs were revealed. She flushed in eagerness, grinning at him in return.

Ray pulled her closer to himself, guiding her forwards, so that she felt the side of the bed pressing against her leg at an angle. A flash of understanding passed between them. She clung onto his neck as he pushed her down to the mattress. The time they'd spent not doing this was long enough, and she didn't want anything to interrupt their time together...

He was lying on top of her, trailing kisses down her throat to the base of her neck. Mariah took deep breaths to calm herself. There was more she could do to him... He sucked lightly on her skin, licking her every so often. She rubbed herself against him, loving the contact their skins made. He liked it too, moving back up to lavish her with another kiss.

She was barely clad in her undergarments... He ran his hands over her body, lingering at her more sensitive areas, before moving on to caress her skin. Her presence alone was overpowering his senses... He wanted to pleasure her again, wanted to bring her happiness...

The woman purred, letting her tongue join his in a heated dance, while trailing her hands down his chest, to his abdomen... He trembled a little. If he thought that was all, he was wrong... She slipped her hand into his boxers, taking hold of him. He growled and shivered violently, nibbling on her lower lip.

His heart quickened when she gave him a light squeeze. He was so obviously aroused... His chest heaved from the strong emotions coursing through his body. Her withdrawn hand was creeping lightly, seductively across his chest... The other was splayed carelessly across his back, just being in contact with him.

He loosened his hold on her, and she took this opportunity to push him onto his back with a practiced ease, breaking the kiss. He watched as she sat lightly on his abdomen, straddling him. She rested her hands on his chest, grinning down at him.

Ray slid his arms up to the small of her back, pulling her down slowly towards him. It seemed to take an eternity... He knew that she was trying to draw out his anticipation... Some of her long pink hair came loose to frame her face. She was beautiful... The woman was nearly on him... He reached up to undo the clasp, so that the dark material fell away from her body. Her surprised gasp induced a twinkle in his eyes.

His golden gaze swept down to her body momentarily, admiring her flawless skin, before looking back up to her face. The bra was swept off his body, before they were caught in another kiss, their hands roaming over each other's body, caressing, groping, fondling...

The man slid her underwear off, moving his hand down to stroke her crotch again... She moaned, rubbing her hips against his. He pinned her suddenly onto the bed, gazing intensely into her eyes. Her pupils were dilated, their depths raging with desire.

She tugged on his boxers, waiting for a mere few seconds, before pushing them down as far as she could reach, then curling her legs up so that she caught the hem of the cloth with her toes. She pulled the last article down with her feet, gasping when she realised how he was pressed against her...

The look in his eyes told her that he felt the same... He murmured huskily in her ear. "I want you, Mari..."

"I have always been yours to take, Ray..." she whispered, her hand creeping down to touch him again. A growl sounded from deep in his throat, filled with urge.

"I need you..."

* * *

So... How was the chapter? Do you think you could raise the review count to 66 or higher, with all that Ray/Mariah scenes I wrote...? It isn't easy, you know... :)

Thanks for reviewing!


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